


The Test Result Inversion

by marcelb



Category: The Big Bang Theory (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-19
Updated: 2016-07-10
Packaged: 2018-03-11 03:41:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 36,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3312590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marcelb/pseuds/marcelb
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'What if' story, exploring if and how Leonard and Penny could've met if a certain detail from the past, as mentioned near the end of season three, would've played out differently. Set during season six and will reference episodes up to and including that season.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Prologue to a story that is a 'what if' story, exploring what would happen if one little fact (not saying which little fact) would be different, resulting in yet another alternate way for our favorite couple to find each other.

"Andy, what the heck?"

Leonard found himself staring at the beautiful woman who was currently admonishing her son. She was dressed professionally in a skirt suit and managed to look incredibly sexy.

The young boy, Leonard had guessed him to be about ten, rolled his eyes. "Relax, Mom. I moved only like forty feet away. Plus the tracker app I installed on our phones clearly showed you where I was."

"That's not the point, Andy. You're only eleven and there are a lot of creeps in the world."

Andy rolled his eyes again. "Mom, this is Dr. Hofstadter, a respected physicist, the one who gave the presentation we just attended. I think he's safe. Besides, you got me enrolled in several self defense and martial arts courses since I was six."

That explained why he looked athletic, Leonard realized. He had already noticed how incredibly smart he was, possibly even smarter than Sheldon.

"Those classes may give you a benefit, but you're still not strong enough to take on a grown man that is out to get you."

"You're too worried, Mom. Not everyone is out to get me. In a few months I'm off to college, and you won't be able to keep an eye on me all the time."

Leonard could see the woman getting emotional at the reminder of her son leaving for college soon.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to make you feel bad."

"I know, Sweetie. And I know I won't be able to look out for you once you're in college. And I know you're smart enough to not approach people that might have bad intentions. I just worry when you're not where I expect you to be."

Andy sighed. "I'm sorry I walked away. But Dr. Hofstadter is like my idol. I just wanted to talk with him when I saw him walking by."

The woman finally looked up at Leonard, who found his heart skipping a beat at the smile on her face. She stood up and took a few steps forward and held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Penny, Andy's mom."

Leonard took her hand and shook it. "Hi. Leonard Hofstadter." He was proud of himself for not stammering. "Call me Leonard," he added, realizing she had not even given her last name, and neither had her son.

"Hi," Penny said again. "I hope Andy didn't bother you?"

"No, not at all," Leonard replied. "He's very polite."

Penny glanced back at her son briefly. "He'd better be." She grinned at Leonard. "It's about the only thing I've been able to teach him since he was six. I bet he asked you tons of questions, though."

Leonard grinned. "Actually, I was just finished answering his first question when you found us."

"Oh." Penny turned around. "Sorry, Sweetie."

Andy shrugged. "It's okay, Mom."

Leonard cleared his throat. "Well, if you two have some time, my lab's down there," he pointed down the hall. "If you want, you could come with me and see what I'm working on and ask questions?" Leonard smiled at the huge smile on Andy's face and Penny chuckled as she also noticed the excitement on her son's face.

"Alright, but we'll need to go in half an hour at the latest," Penny told Andy.

The imposed time limit did nothing to diminish Andy's excitement and he nodded happily in agreement.

* * *

"Wow," Penny said when the hologram of the pencil was replaced by one of Earth. She leaned forward a little, bracing herself on the workbench. "That's so cool." She stood back up when Leonard made a pinching gesture to have hologram zoom out to show the solar system, and then again to that of what she thought was the entire known universe, though she really had no clue. All she knew for sure was that it looked amazingly beautiful.

A rotating motion of his hand made the universe rotate slowly as he completed his explanation of the theory that the entire universe might be just a hologram. Penny found herself staring into his eyes until he turned toward Andy who was asking various questions. She was glad Andy had diverted Leonard's attention, as it gave her time to get her act together.

For the past eleven years she'd been fine alone, never really needing a man in her life. She had never been quite as smitten with the men she did meet professionally either, but something about this man, who was excitedly explaining things to her son at a level that was far beyond her comprehension, had gotten to her.

During her pregnancy, no guy had even wanted to be with her and that hadn't changed even after Andy was born. She had quickly adapted to the change, deciding to focus on her own education, accepting the offer from her parents to take care of Andy during the day. It had been a struggle, both financially and intellectually, but she had obtained a degree in business management. During that time she hadn't dated anyone, not even gone out to parties and such; Andy was the only man she had or needed in her life.

When she found out she was pregnant with Andy, her then boyfriend had quickly dumped her, claiming someone else probably had gotten her pregnant, basically accusing her of either cheating on him or for being a slut. Either way, she was glad he hadn't insisted on staying with her or having any part in raising her son.

Sure, it wouldn't have hurt if he had contributed more than just his semen, but last she heard, about six years ago, he was in jail. By then she had already moved out to LA, scary as that had been. The move had been necessary, as she had no luck finding a job that would pay enough to provide for Andy and herself in or around Omaha.

She had applied for a job opening in LA, mostly because the job would involve managing stars and celebrities, basically small businesses, her old dreams of being an actress having urged her on. She hadn't expected anything to come from it, but was invited to interview.

Penny hadn't known what to do; she couldn't afford a trip to LA just for an interview, especially when she wasn't all that sure she would get the job. In the end she had asked if the interview could be done by phone, explaining that her finances didn't allow for the trip unless the move would be permanent. It had been a risk, but considering she didn't really believe she'd get the job, she decided to take the risk anyway.

The company had understood her situation and had agreed to interview her by phone right at that instant. It had surprised her, but she had accepted the opportunity. The interview had take a little over half an hour and Penny had had a good feeling afterwards. Two weeks later she got a call, offering her the job and and offer to pay moving expenses. She'd found it impossible to say no.

"Mom?"

"Hm?" Penny blinked a few times. "Yes, Sweetie?"

Andy frowned slightly then retrieved his phone and showed her the time. "You said we only had half an hour and that time is up. Also, Dr. Hofstadter offered to exchange contact information, if that's okay with you."

Penny frowned, not having realized the half hour had already passed. "Oh, uhm, I don't think that's a good idea, Sweetie." She hated the crestfallen look on Andy's face but he didn't argue the point, clearly understanding why she didn't like the idea of an adult man having unlimited and unsupervised access to him.

"How about you and I exchange contact information," the physicist asked, indicating her and himself with his hand. "That way, Andy would still have a way to contact me, but only with your knowledge."

Penny smiled at the hopeful look on Andy's face and nodded. "Yeah, that would work." She looked at Leonard apologetically. "Sorry about..."

He immediately raised his hand. "Don't worry, I completely understand. I would've been surprised if you had agreed to my suggestion."

Penny felt unexpectedly excited about exchanging contact information with the physicist, though it also worried her. It had been just Andy and her for such a long time, she was afraid Andy wouldn't like the idea of her starting a relationship. With someone he practically idolized no less. Then again, Andy was smart and would probably understand why she didn't want to remain alone the rest of her life. At least she hoped he would understand. Because to Penny it was all very clear: she wanted an adult relationship, with Leonard.


	2. Chapter 2

Leonard frowned as he re-read the two text messages he had just received, not entirely sure he understood it correctly. But reading it the second time it was clear: Penny was asking him to accompany her while she searched for a gift for Andy's upcoming birthday. Not asking him to help her decide via text or phone. No, she meant actually physically being together.

Leonard replied and, putting his phone down again, couldn't help the smile from forming at the prospect of spending any amount of time with her, then frowned when he realized he had developed a crush on her. Suddenly he wasn't sure his agreement to accompany her was such a good idea. He knew himself well enough to know he was bound to screw things up. Actually, it was a miracle he hadn't done that two days ago when she and Andy had been in the lab.

He had been trying to impress her, he now admitted to himself. Not her son, but her. Going on about the holographic principle definitely had nothing to do with him trying to educate Andy, who in all likelihood had already known about the principle anyway, but everything to do with impressing a beautiful woman.

He didn't quite understand why he'd thought that would be a good idea, or that he even remotely had a chance with someone like her; she was miles out of his league. But he couldn't deny he was attracted to her and not just to the way she looked, even though she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. But he was a fool to even think they would ever be in a relationship. Maybe if they'd be living in the same building, starting out as casual friends, maybe in that situation he'd might have a chance.

He shook his head, suddenly realizing he was starting to overthink things. No matter which what-if scenario he tried to play out in his mind, it was unlikely any of those scenarios would ever become reality. He exhaled loudly before refocusing on his work.

* * *

"That's why I enrolled Andy into those self defense classes," Penny continued her story after taking another sip from her coffee. "It only took a couple of months before he became more confident and stood up for himself. They mostly left him alone after that."

Leonard was impressed, suddenly wishing he had been enrolled into self defense classes when he had been young. "He bested them after only a few months of training?"

Penny chuckled. "Oh, no, he still got beaten the crap out of him. But the fact he had stood up for himself, and he did land a few good hits on those bullies, was apparently enough to make them leave him alone most of the time." She shrugged. "A year later a new bully appeared, but by that time Andy _did_ know how to take care of himself. He wasn't even hurt!"

Leonard grinned at the obvious pride in her voice, not that he could blame her. "I bet that cemented it and nobody dared to bother him after that."

Penny nodded. "Exactly. He became more popular that year as well, so that helped deter any potential new bully." Suddenly her hand was on top of his, surprising Leonard. "You were not that lucky, were you?"

He looked down at his lap, suddenly feeling embarrassed. "Ah, no. I mean, I wasn't as smart as Andy, so the difference wasn't even that big, but I still was the typical nerd." He was surprised when he felt her hand squeeze his a little.

"I'm so sorry, Leonard."

He looked back up again in surprise. "You don't have to be sorry. We didn't even know each other."

Penny shrugged, appearing embarrassed herself as she looked down at her own lap. "No, but I was bullying in high school." She looked back up, straight into his eyes. "The worst part is that I only did it so I could be part of the 'cool' crowd."

Seeing her on the verge of crying, he placed his other hand on top of hers. "Penny, it's okay."

Penny shook her head in denial. "No, it's not! I saw what it did to Andy, his daily fear to even go out of the house because of the kids in the neighbourhood, the crying when he got back home..." She sighed again, her voice going down to just above a whisper. "I did that to someone. For a couple of years. And if I didn't do something on a particular day, I know someone else did. I shouldn't have given shit about the so called cool crowd." The last sentence came out in a more regular voice. "I should've been a friend to her." By that time, tears were rolling down her cheeks.

"You could be her friend now," Leonard offered.

Penny shook her head. "I can't. She committed suicide just before she would have graduated. And I'm to blame, at least partly."

"You can't think like that," he said. "There's a good chance it would have happened, even if you had been her friend."

"But then she would have had someone to talk to about this, to support her. Maybe I could've talked her out of it."

Leonard shook his head slightly. "What could you have said? If she was being bullied every day, what could you say to convince her to keep enduring that?"

Penny was quiet for a bit, trying to find something. "I could've told her it would get better as she got older?"

Leonard shook his head. "Wouldn't have helped. She'd still have to deal with it for a number of years. Besides, she would soon realize it doesn't get better, not really."

"It doesn't?"

Leonard looked down embarrassed, but looked back up when her second hand came up on top his, squeezing his lightly. He suddenly realized their hands were all joined, one on top of the other, in the middle of the small table they were sitting at. "Well, it's not as bad as high school, as long as I'm around my colleagues and friends. But in general, I don't like venturing out, especially when I know there will be large bulky guys."

"Oh, Leonard." Penny's hand squeezed his once more.

"You guys need a refill."

Leonard looked up and shook his head. "Not for me, thanks."

"No, thanks," Penny added, retracting her top hand to finish her cup.

Their special moment being broken, Leonard reluctantly retracted his hand. Though maybe it was for the best, he then thought. He was after all only kidding himself to even think she might fall in love with him.

* * *

"Holy crap on a cracker," Penny said out loud when she was alone in her car. They had just kissed; briefly, but on the lips. She hadn't intended it to be on the lips, just on the cheek, but at the last moment she'd moved to softly press her lips against his. And even though it had been brief and no tongues were involved, the kiss had been incredible, invoking feelings in her she hadn't had in a long time.

Sure, she had dates a couple of times since Andy's birth, but it never worked out, her number one priority always being her young son. Most of the guys she had dated hadn't wanted the responsibility of someone else's son, though they clearly had wanted the fun part. After a while she'd decided it just wasn't worth it and had stopped dating.

Never in a million years had she expected that a short bespectacled physicist would get her juices flowing again. Her subconscious must have known, rerouting her lips away from the cheek she had targeted to make it clear to her. And boy, had it made it clear. It had taken all her willpower to not deepen the kiss or invite him to her house, a thought that had definitely popped in her mind the moment their lips touched.

But she knew she shouldn't just jump in without checking the water level. It wasn't just how it would affect her that she had to consider; she also needed to consider how it would affect Andy. The fact that he'd be going to college soon, didn't imply it wouldn't affect him. Of course it was a bonus he already liked Leonard, but how would he feel if his own mother would begin a relationship with his idol?

Another thing she had to consider: how did Leonard feel about all this? What did he expect to happen? Would he just sleep with her and count it as another conquest? No, she immediately answered her own question. He didn't seem the kind that would just say "wham-bam, thank you ma'am." He probably didn't even believe he had a shot at being with her. Most likely, she could be hitting on him and he wouldn't even realize that that was going on.

She shook her head to clear it, finally realizing she had been sitting in her car for a while now, without even so much as turning the ignition. She giggled, suddenly feeling like a schoolgirl having her first crush, before starting her car and fastening her seat belt.

* * *

"Huh?" Penny's eyes refocused, looking at her son who stood in front of her with a raised eyebrow and small grin. "Oh, hi, sweetie."

"You were totally zoned out," Andy answered, his grin widening. "I've been trying to get your attention for a while now."

Penny smiled. "Sorry, sweetie. Didn't mean to scare you like that."

Andy shook his head. "It didn't scare me. You were smiling, so I knew it wasn't anything bad."

Definitely not bad, Penny silently agreed, her thoughts having been filled with a certain physicist. "Right. Did you ask me something?"

"No, just trying to let you know I was home and that I was going to play some videogames."

Penny nodded. It was pointless to ask him if he did his homework; either he'd done it, or he'd do it later. And even if he didn't, it certainly didn't affect his grades in the slightest. She knew high school was just too easy for him and he wasn't learning anything being there or doing homework. "Okay, sweetie. I'll start making dinner in an hour or so." She stuck out her tongue when he pulled a face. "Fine, I'll start calling in an order at that Asian place you like so much, Siam Palace."

Andy rolled his eyes at her. "That's Thai, mom. But yeah, that would be great."

Penny waved her hand. "Chinese, Korean, Thai, whatever. It's still Asian." She hid her grin, knowing full well it was Thai food, but somehow it gave her a kick to have Andy react like that. "You'll have your usual?"

Andy nodded. "Yes, please."

"Okay, you go play your game, and I'll order the stuff and pick it up in an hour." Penny frowned when he nodded again, but didn't move away. He looked like he wanted to say something, but wasn't sure he should. "Sweetie, you know you can talk to me about anything, right? Because I can see you're struggling with deciding to tell me something."

Andy sighed and then sat down next to her. "It's more like a question." He went silent, and Penny decided to wait for him to feel ready. "You know when I go to college, I'm not going to be here a lot of the time," he finally said, half a statement, half a question.

Penny nodded, suppressing the sadness that washed over her. "I know, and I'm proud of my most favorite guy going to be learning all these high techy-techy things."

He smiled at her briefly. "It's just..." He sighed. "I know you haven't dated anyone in a long time, partly because none of the guys you did date wanted the responsibility. But I don't want you to feel lonely when I'm gone, you know?"

Penny blinked several times to keep the tears from falling and pulled him in for a hug. "I know, sweetie." She bit her lip briefly. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you later. About me possibly dating... someone."

"Mom, you don't need my permission."

Penny released him and shook her head. "I know. It's just that I'm not sure how you'd feel about it. You're the most important person in my life."

"I'm okay with sharing the position with the mystery man you've apparently met."

Penny chuckled. "Trust me, he's never going to be more important than you." She shook her head. "Anyway, I'm not even sure if he likes me that way."

* * *

Leonard opened up Facebook only to be confronted by a friend request from Penny, causing him to frown. There probably wasn't any harm in accepting it, except that he had decided on the way home from the mall he had to minimize contact with her. It was too hard on him to pretend just being friends when he definitely wanted more and knowing she just didn't feel the same.

He smiled softly as memories of their goodbye kiss entered his thoughts. Even though it had been very brief, it had been on the lips. Initiated by _her_. He wasn't entirely sure what the meaning behind that kiss had been, but it definitely had had an effect on him. He wasn't even sure if she had intended to kiss him on the lips like that, especially since she hadn't made any attempt to deepen it and had ended it pretty quickly after it had started.

He exhaled loudly, then clicked on the accept button. He had been overthinking things again, and it got him nowhere. There was no harm in accepting the friend request; if it would get too much for him, he could always change the settings so her posts wouldn't show up in his feed.

He started to smile as he looked at the many photo's of her, either with or without her son. There were also several with her parents and even her siblings. It wasn't until maybe ten minutes later that he realized there wasn't a single one with a boyfriend in recent years. The last ones seem to have been at least six years ago, and Penny hadn't looked very happy.

He knew she wasn't married or living with anyone, but he had assumed that she was at least dating someone, but now it seemed she wasn't. He suddenly chuckled and shook his head; the new information had him entertain the thought they might actually become a couple, until he realized it was highly unlikely she'd be interested in someone like him.

* * *

"Hey, you!"

Leonard turned around at the familiar voice, slightly surprised to see Penny standing there, smiling brightly at him. "Hi," he said, immediately chastising himself for sounding so happy to see her, even though he _was_ very happy.

"Didn't expect to see you again," Penny said, still smiling, linking her arm with his, placing herself against him.

Leonard's confusion, like his heart rate, increased. It probably didn't mean anything to her, just a form of affection for a friend, but to Leonard's mind, already having had thoughts of her for the last couple of hours, it had a definite meaning.

"You come here often," Penny asked, either oblivious to what the simple gesture was doing to him, or simply trying to get him to talk.

"Uh, yeah. Every week on this day." A second later he frowned, when he realized how that sounded. "I mean, my roommate has this schedule of when we should eat what food." He shrugged and grinned. "He's kinda weird that way." He glanced ahead briefly, noticing there were still three people ahead of them. "And you?"

Penny giggled. "Not as often as Andy would like." She grinned up at him. "I'm not a very good cook, so me getting take-out is quite a regular thing. But we don't have a schedule set. So, does your roommate always order the exact same dish?"

Leonard nodded. "Yeah, it's a very rare thing to deviate from his schedule, though he sometimes does." He chuckled. "You want to hear something funny? Sheldon's not even here this week. Apparently I'm so accustomed to the schedule, I seem to stick to it even when he's not around." He chuckled when she laughed briefly. He found it adorable to see her briefly bite her lip.

"If you want you could join Andy and I?"

Leonard frowned slightly, not expecting this at all. "Oh, no, I don't want to intrude..."

"Oh, hush. I'm inviting you, so you're not intruding. Plus, Andy will be ecstatic to have you around."

Leonard knew he was being weak; he was supposed to minimize hanging out with Penny, for his own sanity, but instead he answered, "I guess it's better than eating alone. Okay, I'll join you for dinner."


	3. Chapter 3

Penny noticed the expression on Andy's face. Of course her genius son immediately made the link between her earlier confession to him to have found someone she might want to have a relationship with, and the fact his idol was currently in their home to enjoy dinner. And they hadn't even sat down yet. She was surprised when Andy, after shaking hands with Leonard, sat himself down in the chair, leaving her loveseat the only spot for her and Leonard to sit on. It was a clear signal her son approved, and she sat down next to Leonard with butterflies in her stomach, suddenly feeling very nervous.

While eating dinner, Leonard and Andy had quickly turned conversation to a physics topic, far too complex for her to even attempt to follow, and she just ate her food, smiling whenever she looked towards Leonard, though she didn't realize that last part until they had almost finished eating.

Leonard and Andy were still deep in discussion about physics, Andy clearly trying to learn as much as possible, and while it should have left her feeling ignored, she sort of enjoyed their talking back and forth. For one, it allowed her to quietly observe Leonard when he was clearly in his element; he spoke with confidence, not once stammering or looking away shyly. She liked seeing that side of him. The second reason was that it gave her an idea on how well Leonard and her son would get along, should she decide to really pursue a relationship with the cute physicist.

Her eyes moved away from looking at his head to take inventory of the rest of his body. She remembered their conversation earlier in which Leonard had mentioned he wished he had enrolled in self-defense class, be more athletic, but with his hoodie removed, Penny could see his arms and bit of his chest. While no one would call him buff, there was definitely some definition there, and Penny wanted nothing more than let her hands slide along his biceps or over his chest, preferably after divesting him of his shirt as well.

Penny quickly turned away and looked in the direction of Andy, glad to find his attention still focused on the conversation with Leonard. She needed to clear her mind; it was way too soon to have these kinds of thoughts. Then again, she hadn't been with anyone in six years. A long time, especially considering the very healthy libido she had displayed during the couple of years before she stopped dating. She definitely missed that part, she admitted to herself, then frowned slightly. Was she only interested in Leonard because he could give her something she hadn't had in a long time? Was this just something physical? She didn't think it was, but now she wondered if _he_ would think it was just a one night thing, should she eventually decide to sleep with him. Or what if he was only interested in a one-nighter? Not that it would stop her from riding him all night, she admitted to herself once again.

"Mom, you don't have to try to follow this discussion. It's pretty advanced physics, anyway."

Penny realized her frown must have deepened while pondering the potential of her and Leonard. She smiled at Andy. "I wasn't. I was just thinking about… stuff. Work." She gave a small nod, happy she found some explanation for her frown.

"Oh," Andy replied, sounding as if he didn't quite believe her. "Well, I'll put these," he indicated the now mostly empty containers, clearly not prodding any further into her lie, "in the trash and take it out before I go over to Rick's."

Penny's expression changed immediately. "How's he holding up?"

Andy shrugged. "As good as anyone would after losing both a father and a sister."

Penny nodded sadly. She'd heard about the accident on the freeway, hours before finding out who the victims were. She pulled Andy in for a hug. "You tell Rick's mother if she needs anything, she can ask me, okay?"

"I will," Andy promised, extracting himself from the hug, collecting the containers and taking them to kitchen. Moments later he walked back in and grabbed the duffel Penny hadn't even noticed before. "I'm staying over and go to school from Rick's place, so I'm not going to see you until tomorrow late afternoon, after Taekwondo practice."

Penny nodded, remembering they'd talked about this before she had gone to get their food. "Okay, Sweetie." Andy said goodbye to Leonard and walked away. As Penny heard him open the door she yelled after him, "I love you," to which he replied he loved her too. She turned around at the clearing of a throat.

"I guess I should go back home as well."

Penny frowned, hearing the insecurity in him again. "No, you can stay. I mean, it's still pretty early, and there's no need for both of us being alone all evening."

* * *

Leonard had started to feel more and more comfortable as the evening progressed, no doubt at least in part thanks to the wine they'd been drinking. They'd ended up telling a lot about themselves to each other and he was glad she had persuaded him to stay. But checking the time, he knew it was time to get going.

"I think I should call a cab," he said after remembering how much alcohol he'd enjoyed the last couple of hours. Perhaps not much but since he didn't drink very often, he knew he was impaired enough to make it dangerous to drive.

"You should definitely not drive," Penny agreed with him. "You know, you can just stay in guestroom? I just put on fresh sheets."

Leonard frowned. "Are you sure? It'd be just the two of us in the house." Not that he intended to decline the offer, but he felt obligated to at least give her a way out, in case her alcohol affected mind hadn't thought the suggestion through completely.

She grinned at him. "I promise I won't jump your bones."

If he hadn't drank so much, Leonard was sure his shock would have shown. Instead the alcohol had started to make him brave, and he found himself replying, "what if I can't promise the same thing?"

She shrugged, but Leonard noticed the grin didn't fade in the least. "I might object to appear being a good girl, but I'm sure it wouldn't take much for you to change my mind."

Yep, he definitely should be showing shock now, but the alcohol seemed to make him incapable of that facial expression. Then it hit him: the alcohol had lowered her inhibitions and she'd probably would regret it later. She couldn't really mean any of this; in his experience he had to really work hard to even get a woman's attention and he hadn't even attempted anything with the gorgeous woman sitting next to him, knowing she was just way out of his league.

"It's up to you, but the offer of the guestroom stands," Penny interrupted his train of thought.

Leonard glanced at the clock once more. At one a.m. he wasn't really looking forward to call for a cab, wait for it to pick him up and take him home. Plus, he would have to come back here later to retrieve his car. "Alright, I'll take the guestroom."

Penny smiled brightly. "Great! Follow me, I'll show you where."

Before he could do anything, Penny had grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet, pulling him with her as she moved toward the stairs. His eyes had turned toward her ass for a moment, and now he found he couldn't get them to look anywhere else. He admired the movement as he followed her up the stairs, far less steady than she was. Confusion washed over him as she stopped at the top, to retrieve her smartphone. Seconds later a light at the end of the hall came on and the light coming from downstairs vanished at the same time. "Did you just control the lights with your phone?"

She turned to him, giving a small shrug. "Andy showed me once how he could control pretty much anything, so I asked if we could install it permanently for the lights and stuff. Obviously without public access." She turned away and stretched her arm in front of her. "The guestroom is the one on the far right, directly next to the bathroom. If you need anything," she glanced behind her with a grin at 'anything,' "my room is right here."

Leonard just gave a small nod. "Thanks."

Penny shrugged. "Sure, no problem, sweetie." She opened her bedroom door, then turned back. "Oh, there should be toothbrush still in its package in the bathroom, as well as aspirin, in case you get a headache in the morning."

"We should probably drink a lot of water," Leonard said, suddenly remembering. "Much less of a headache in the morning."

Penny frowned briefly. "That actually works?"

Leonard looked sheepishly at her. "Well, that's what I have been told. I usually don't drink so much, so I never really had to test this particular theory."

"Okay, I guess we'll test it together, then," Penny said, turning on the lights downstairs with her phone. "I'll get us some bottles," she said, descending the stairs.

Leonard followed her with his eyes all the way, until she walked out of view. He then looked into her bedroom, the door still wide open. He didn't dare step inside, but he could see the bed and her wardrobe closet. He didn't get much time, as he heard her walking back to the stairs. Again he followed her with his eyes, blushing when she took the last step to the landing and he realized just exactly where his eyes had been focused.

"Here you go," Penny said, handing him two bottles. "I got us two each, in case we get thirsty later."

* * *

Penny smiled slightly to herself once her bedroom door was closed; she'd seen where Leonard's eyes had been directed at as she ascended the stairs with the water bottles. She wasn't unaccustomed to men, and on occasion women, staring at her cleavage, but it was cute when he'd blushed and averted his eyes when he realized what he'd done, even though she hadn't shown any indication of discomfort or even noticing.

She changed into a white tanktop and Hello Kitty shorts, her mind going over the evening. To Penny it had been instantly clear the cute physicist wasn't used to drinking, judging by how little alcohol it had taken for him to get tipsy. Penny didn't drink very often anymore, and definitely not so much that she'd be too drunk to think straight, but her tolerance was definitely still quite high.

But the alcohol had seemed to have given Leonard a little more confidence in his interactions with her. They'd talked about their lives upto pretty much the day they first met, and Penny felt they'd really gotten to know each other better.

She stepped out of her bedroom and walked over to the bathroom. She stopped when the guestroom opened and Leonard stepped out in just his boxers, her eyes hungrily taking in his bare arms and chest. Damn, he was far more attractive than she had initially thought and she was fighting the urge to let her hands roam over the newly exposed parts of his body.

"Oh, uhm, do you want to go first," Leonard asked, gesturing toward the bathroom.

Penny bit her lip, her eyes not quite done taking him in. "Uhm, no, I'd probably need more time than you." Against her better judgement, she moved past him into the guestroom, brushing against him, her hands gliding over his chest. "I'll wait in here."

She waited until the bathroom door closed behind him, before she groaned and let herself fall backwards on the bed. "Get a grip," she murmured to herself. That wasn't going to be easy now that she'd seen quite a bit more of him and of course her inner voice took the opportunity to point out how long it had been since she'd been with a guy.

It took him only a couple of minutes and during that time she had moved into a sitting position, her hands resting behind her on the bed, allowing her to lean backwards slightly. She stubbornly denied to her inner voice the pose was intended to draw attention to her breasts but was quite pleased when she noticed his look as he entered the guestroom.

She stood up and walked over when Leonard seemed unsure about continuing in. "All set for the night," she asked, to which he nodded. "Good," she said, wrapping her arms around him to hug him tightly against her. "Sleep tight," she said, turning her head slightly to kiss him on the cheek.

"Uhm, yeah, sleep tight," Leonard said, sounding even more unsure and uncomfortable than ever.

Penny bit her lower lip for a moment, not ready to let go of him, and seriously contemplating pressing her lips against his. She knew if she did that, there would be no turning back for her. She wanted him but she knew Leonard would hold off, afraid she was letting the alcohol make the decision for her.

No, if this was going to happen, and she was going to try to make it happen soon, there would be no alcohol involved. It would have to be clear to him that she wanted it. She finally released him, the hug having gone on too long already. "Right, see you in the morning." She detected the hint of question in her statement, and it seemed Leonard had too.

"Of course." His response was accompanied by a soft smile. "See you in the morning, Penny. And thanks for… well, inviting me earlier and allowing me to crash here."

Penny smiled brightly. "My pleasure, Leonard." She leaned forward, her hand on his chest for balance, and placed another kiss on his cheek. Damn, feeling his chest against the palm of her hand was making it difficult for her to not just jump him right there and then. Before she could do anything rash, she removed her hand and turned around. In her haste, she knocked over one of the knickknacks on the dresser, causing it to fall to the floor.

She cursed softly and bent over to pick it up. As she grabbed the item, she suddenly realized her ass was directed straight at Leonard, raised up high in the air. She giggled at the thought of Leonard looking at her ass, probably wide-eyed and embarrassed. "I can be such a spaz sometimes," she lied, so he wouldn't think she realized he was looking at her ass. She bought him a few extra seconds of admiration when the item dropped just as she had picked it up. It was sheer luck it rolled backwards a little, forcing her to take a step back, closer to the physicist.

Finally placing the item back where it belonged, she threw a smile his way. "See you tomorrow, sweetie," she said, walking out of the guestroom. In the bathroom she stood in front of the mirror, ready to take off her make-up, but stared at her own image. It had been a while since she'd seen herself look back so happy, and it was all because of the man currently in her guestroom. If there had been any doubt before if she wanted to try to have a relationship with him, it had disappeared completely, leaving only certainty.

She wondered if he was entertaining the same thoughts, though she knew that if he did, he was undoubtedly telling himself he was being silly, that he didn't have a chance. No, for this relationship to even start, it would have to be her initiating it. And she was going to, very soon.

* * *

Leonard was awoken by his bladder, which was in desperate need of being emptied. Despite the need, he checked the time on his phone first, noting it was only four a.m. He put on his glasses and turned on the little lamp beside the bed. Unaccustomed to this room and the house, he felt he needed both to safely make it over to the bathroom.

Earlier he'd been laying awake for almost an hour, the vision of the gorgeous woman only a few feet away in the master bedroom keeping him awake. As a result he had only slept for two hours, probably a little less and he was sure it was going to be a while before he'd fall asleep again, his brain already retrieving various images from last night.

He wasn't fooling himself in thinking Penny had any interest in him other than a friend, her actions obviously the result of an inebriated mind. The long hug had felt wonderful, though he doubted she had even noticed her breasts had been easy to feel against his bare chest. And he was sure his eyes almost popped out of their sockets when she had bent over forward to pick up an item she had accidentally knocked over. She probably hadn't even realized it had put her amazing bum in the perfect position for him to admire. He probably should've turned away, but the alcohol had affected him as well, and his eyes had been glued to her firm round backside.

The images and memories kept repeating as he crawled back in bed but he was apparently more tired than he thought, as the next thing he knew he was waking up at a little past eight, his bladder once again playing alarm clock. Just as he opened the bedroom door, Penny stepped out of the bathroom, still in her sleeping shorts and tank top.

"'Morning, sweetie," she said, a smile on her lips. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," he replied, only lying a little bit, as he slept just fine the past four hours. "But I really need to, uhm," he gestured toward the bathroom.

"Oh, sure," Penny said, stepping out of the way.

He decided he wasn't going back to bed and brushed his teeth as well. When he returned to the guestroom, he was surprised to see Penny waiting there.

"You wanna sleep some more, or would you like me to make us some french toast?"

"Oh, uhm, no, I wasn't going back to bed. But you don't have to make me breakfast!"

"Of course I do. You're a guest and breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Besides, it's one of the few things I can actually cook," Penny added, grinning.

Leonard then nodded. "Okay, sure." As he pulled on his pants he noticed she was staring at him with, what seemed to be, a look of appreciation. He'd never seen a woman look at him like that, never really thought he'd be the recipient of such a look. He wasn't tall, muscular, or particularly good looking; nothing about him warranted any woman looking at him like she was. Was he reading too much into her look? Was it just his own fantasies causing him to believe she was interested in him? That did seem a lot more plausible.

"Right, I'll get working on breakfast."

Leonard frowned as Penny seemed to hurry out of the room. What was that all about? After a couple of seconds he shrugged, figuring he'd never understand women. He picked up his shirt and put it on. Grabbing his phone from the nightstand, he walked out of the guestroom, heading downstairs.

* * *

Penny fanned herself as she walked toward the kitchen. After seeing him bending over to get his pants, his cute tushy turned in her direction, she had gotten aroused. Her arousal had only heightened as he had turned back to face her, before stepping into his pants. She'd been on the verge of just grabbing him and kissing him passionately, ready to push him on the bed. She had realized she had to get out of there fast, or it would have happened.

 _Would that have been so bad_ her inner voice asked. Penny didn't know. She wasn't sure how he would feel about it. Hell, she wasn't even sure how she felt. Was she attracted to him? Definitely. But was it just physical, or did she in fact want more, like a real relationship? Ever since their moment in the guestroom last night, her mind had been going over what she'd wanted to do to him, what it would be like to be bed-partners. That didn't seem to include anything on the romantic level, did it?

Then again, their evening had been wonderful, as had their conversation at the coffee place in the mall. They had gotten along great then, even though he'd been timid. And she hadn't been focused on the physical aspect all that much. Of course she'd felt the physical attraction, but she had also been interested in learning more about him, and he'd seemed equally interested in her life. That's more like looking for a real relationship, wasn't it? So what if she was horny enough she wanted to rip his clothes off? She still wanted to be in a relationship with him, and it wouldn't be the first time she started a relationship by having sex first.

"Penny, are you alright?"

She turned around, smiling. "Yeah, I am."

"Oh. I just thought… You were just standing there..."

Her smile widened. "Yeah, just thinking about stuff, making a decision."

He looked wearily at her. "You haven't decided to try something new for breakfast, have you?"

She pointed an accusing finger in his direction, her smile not wavering. "Hey, you don't get to mock my cooking skills yet. Just for that, I _should_ try something new."

"Maybe I should just skip breakfast," Leonard replied, though Penny could tell he wasn't planning on doing that anymore than she was going to cook something else.

"Right, French toast it is." She turned around again and started on that.

"Hey, is it okay if I check my email?"

Penny glanced behind her. "Sure. The WiFi password is freeloaders not appreciated. No spaces." At Leonard's chuckle she added, "yeah, well my neighbor seems to think he doesn't have to pay for anything." After a few minutes of silence, she glanced at Leonard again. "Got any plans for today?"

"Oh, uhm, no, nothing. You?"

"Nothing planned, really. Wanna hang out today?"

Leonard seemed surprised, then looked down at himself. "Sure, but I really need to go home and get some clean clothes. And a shower."

Penny shrugged. "Cool, I'm curious about where you live. I'll come with you after breakfast."


	4. Chapter 4

"Oh, uhm, there was an accident a few years ago," Leonard replied to Penny's inquiry. "Nobody got hurt," he added hastily at her shocked look. "It was empty at the time of the explosion."

"Explosion?! The elevator blew up?"

"Uh, yeah." Leonard wished she would just drop the subject, and was glad they were almost on the fourth floor. Digging the keys from his pant pockets as he climbed the last set of steps, he failed to see his large neighbor, and walked straight into him. It was good thing the larger man grabbed hold of him, or he would've fallen down the stairs, quite possibly straight into Penny.

"Whoa, careful Leonard."

Leonard looked up at the man that towered over him. Sheldon and he had been terrified of the man when they'd seen him move in, but he turned out to be a really nice guy, a good neighbor and even friend. He'd even agreed to be Superman for their Halloween party at the comic book store, his girlfriend completing their group as an excellent Wonder Woman. "Sorry, Jason, I wasn't paying attention."

"I can see why."

Leonard noticed the knowing grin directed straight at him. "Oh, no, I met her the other day because her son wanted to attend one of my lectures and then I ran into her last night when I went to get take-out." When Penny added he'd stayed the night, Leonard hastily added, "In the guestroom."

Jason chuckled. "Bro, leave that last part out. Let people think something did happen." He offered his hand to Penny. "Hi, I'm Jason. I live across the hall from Leonard and his crazy roommate."

"He's not..." Leonard started but was interrupted by Jason almost immediately.

"Bro, his Mom should get a second opinion."

Penny laughed. "He can't be that bad. I'm Penny."

"Oh, trust me, he is. Anyway, I gotta run, or Miranda is going to kill me. Nice meeting you, Penny. Leonard, we're still on for tomorrow?"

Ah, yes, the dinner invitation. Still, it beat being home alone. "Sure."

Jason gave a nod. "Cool. Should I ask Miranda to set an extra plate," he asked, glancing briefly in Penny's direction.

Leonard was shocked when Penny enthusiastically said she'd love to accompany him; was she seriously wanting to accompany him to have dinner with him and two people she didn't even know? "Uhm, yeah, I guess we'll both be there."

"Great!"

* * *

Penny looked around the apartment. The living area was pretty spacious, roomier than she had expected. Like her son's bedroom, a good percentage was taken up with laptops, gaming consoles and a lot of games. She'd pretty much imagined that would be the case, but it surprised her how neatly everything was stored; she didn't even dare to go in Andy's room, afraid she would trip over all the stuff just thrown about carelessly.

It quickly dawned on her everything she could see was tidy and spotless. It hadn't occurred to her Leonard might be a neat freak, though it was possible his roommate was responsible for that. After all, Leonard had mentioned how his roommate had a fixed schedule for food, so it was possible the guy was just very obsessive about everything being in their proper place.

"If you want a drink, you can just get it from the refrigerator. Just nothing from the top shelf."

Penny turned to look at Leonard. "Why not?"

"That's Sheldon's shelf and he freaks out when he knows others have touched his stuff. And, because he has an eidetic memory, he will actually notice if things have moved around, so forget about me replacing whatever you took, because I just wouldn't get it right."

Yep, the roommate was definitely obsessive. "You're kidding, right?" Penny walked to the kitchen.

"I wish. Okay, I'm gonna take a shower."

Penny nodded as she looked at the selection of cold beverages. "Sure, sweetie. Take your time." She decided on just water, took it out and closed the door. She walked toward the couch. "Is it okay if I watch TV?"

"Of course," Leonard's reply came from down the hallway leading to the bathroom and apparently the two bedrooms.

She was about to sit down, when a thought occurred to her. "Hey, does your roommate have a spot he doesn't want anyone else to sit in?"

"Oh, uhm, yeah. The leftmost seat on the couch is his. How did you guess?"

She turned to him as he had actually walked back, shirtless once again. Did he have any idea what that was doing to her? "Well, if he's so obsessed with pretty much everything being just perfect, I figured there was a good chance the seating arrangement might be set as well. He'd probably notice if anyone disturbed his spot?"

"Probably. He once sat down on some change and added up."

"Now I know you're just messing with me."

He grinned at her. "Again, I wish, but no, he seriously did that. I really should take that shower."

* * *

Leonard was drying himself, his mind still on the beautiful woman currently sitting in the livingroom. She had accepted Jason's invitation without pause, had even seemed happy about it. It wasn't likely last night's alcohol was still affecting her, which would indicate her interest in him might be genuine, however unlikely that had seemed not even twentyfour hours ago.

Of course, it was entirely possible she was only interested in friendship and nothing more. But he'd seen her look at him when he'd been shirtless, a look he'd never been on the receiving end of before last night. All the signs pointed to the fact that she was physically attracted to him, unlikely as that seemed.

It should make him feel good about himself: an attractive woman showing interest in him beyond friendship, something any guy would be pleased about. But all it did to him was make him even more nervous and uncomfortable, as he wondered at what point he'd do something stupid that would chase her away. None of his previous relationships had lasted very long, as everytime he had managed to scare away the woman he'd been in a relationship with in a very short timespan. Of course his roommate had managed to scare a few away for him, but even before meeting Sheldon he'd never been in a relationship lasting longer than a few weeks. Heck, the only reason Joyce had stayed with him for almost a month had more to do with her being a spy, than anything remotely romantic or even physical attraction.

Then again, all his previous relationships, with the exception of Joyce Kim, had been initiated by him, with a great deal of effort on his part to get the woman in question even interested enough to go out with him. If Joyce's interest had been solely based on obtaining classified information from him, did that mean Penny's interest in him might have an ulterior motive as well? It didn't seem likely she was fishing for classified information, but how could he be sure? Should he ask one of his government contacts to perform a background check on her?

_Yeah, that would go over well_ , Leonard thought with disgust. _Just imagine going up to her and say, "hey, you know how I wasn't sure about going out with you? Well, your background check came back good, so when should we go on a date?"_ Okay, so maybe he wouldn't tell her, but what if she found out about it? Besides, Joyce had asked him about his government work from practically the first minute they'd met, whereas Penny had shown nothing more than a passing interest. Her son had shown more interest, but nothing specific, just physics in general. No, Penny and Andy weren't likely to be spies, so that meant Penny was actually interested in him. "So, what now," he asked himself, feeling that he had basically circled back to the same question he had when his brain had decided to put all its capacity into figuring this out.

* * *

Penny glanced toward the bathroom door once again, hoping Leonard would make an appearance soon. Between the Indian not talking, at least not directly to her, and the miniature Beatles member talking, she was becoming very uncomfortable. Luckily Leonard did step out of the bathroom at that exact moment, clad in just his boxers and Penny's eyes once again roamed over his torso and arms.

"Hey guys," Leonard said. "What's going on?"

She turned to the guys in time to see the creepy short guy ogling her breasts and she raised a warning eyebrow. "Keep looking and you may lose that eye." True, the girls were a bit on display, but it was for Leonard's benefit, not his.

"Oh, you're worth losing an eye over," creepy short guy answered, but looked away from her anyway and focused on Leonard. "We came by last night but you weren't here. Just wanted to check if you're okay, but..." At this he turned back to her, "It looks like you were doing fine."

Penny stood up, mostly to reduce his view of her, folded her arms and turned straight to the creep. "Yes he did, and I think it's being disrespectful to your friend to be ogling his date like that."

Creepy short guy turned his head quickly toward Leonard again. "Date? You guys actually went on a date?"

"He even stayed over," Penny added, hoping Leonard would this time refrain from elaborating on the actual sleeping arrangement. "And we had a great time, didn't we sweetie?"

It seemed like Leonard had indeed learned from his encounter with his large neighbor earlier and raised his head proudly. "Yes we did. And Penny's right, Howard. I don't appreciate you looking at her like that."

Ah, creepy Beatles guy had a name. Penny watched as the Indian leaned over and whispered in his ear, to which Howard started the chuckle. "Yeah, I guess so," Howard said, nodding to his friend.

"What?" Penny accompanied her question with a glare, as she assumed the little joke between the two was most likely about her night with Leonard and their obvious assumption, mistaken as it was, about what had happened last night.

"Well, Raj pointed out that Leonard apparently has the power of brainwashing, or you would never have invited him in the first place."

"Wow," Penny said, turning to Leonard. "Nice friends you got here, Leonard."

Howard shrugged. "Oh, come on. How likely is it for someone like you to..."

"What do you mean 'someone like me'?" Penny took a step in Howard's direction, who immediately took a step back and raised his hands, Raj following him, looking terrified of her.

"Nothing," Howard exclaimed. "It's just, you're very beautiful and Leonard's..."

"What about Leonard? He's a great guy, polite, smart, good looking..." _God damn hot in just his boxers and his hair still damp from his shower._ "...and, as far as I'm aware, honest. Why wouldn't he be able to date 'someone like me'?" She pointed at Raj as he started to whisper in Howard's ear again. "Hey, if you've got something to say, say it out loud or keep it shut."

* * *

Leonard couldn't stop smiling as he walked toward his bedroom. Penny had made it very clear to Howard and Raj she wasn't someone they should argue with. More importantly, she'd made them believe the two of them had sex the night before; there was no question in his mind she knew exactly which conclusion the guys would jump to, and she'd kept that ilusion up, not even coming clean as they guys left the apartment.

Leonard was about to close the bedroom door, when Penny rushed in. "I'm not gonna stay out there by myself again," she said as he looked at her questioningly. "I don't think I want to meet any more of your friends without you around."

Leonard chuckled as he closed the door. "You pretty much met everyone except Sheldon. The chances of him returning early unexpected are pretty slim." As soon as he had turned around, Penny was pushing him back against the door, her lips on his, the palms of her hands resting gently on his chest. It took a few seconds and Penny's probing tongue for him to respond to her kiss.

He wasn't sure how long the kiss actually lasted, completely lost in the sensation of this gorgeous woman kissing him with more passion than anyone that had come before her. If he had doubted the genuinity of her attraction, it was completely wiped away by the way she was still touching his chest, her shallow breathing and widened pupils. Things he'd never seen with Joyce. He smiled at her as she bit her lip, looking uncertainly at him.

"Sorry, I just... It wasn't too much, was it? Oh, God, please don't say I came on too strong. It's just... I really like you and, you're just all... bare chested sexiness and, oh God, I can't believe I just said that! Ugh, I'm such an idiot..."

Leonard pulled her mouth back to his, kissing her again, showing her he didn't mind in the least. "It wasn't too much," he told her once the kiss ended. "But I definitely was surprised by this." He grinned when her hands were gently gliding over his chest. "I better get dressed. You know, hide my 'bare chested sexiness' so we can talk about us." The prospect of actually talking to her about them, about what might happen between them, terrified him. In his experience, talking led inevitably to him messing up, chasing the woman away.

"Yeah, you should," Penny agreed. "I don't think I could focus on a conversation when you're like this."

The fact that Penny's eyes were still directed at his body proved to him more than words ever could that she really was physically attracted to him. He put on a shirt first, suddenly feeling a little bit self conscious.

"I really didn't plan on attacking you like that," Penny said. "I mean, I wanted to ever since I saw you similarly exposed last night, but I wanted to make sure we were on the same page."

Leonard nodded in acknowledgement as he put on his socks. "So, what page are we on? I mean, I've been attracted to you pretty much since the second I met you." He glanced in her direction as he stood up to pull on his pants, seeing her nod, brow slightly furrowed.

"Yeah, me too, though I tried to suppress it. Then we had our emotional moment at that little cafeteria in the mall, and the peck on the lips as we said our goodbyes. Again, that was not planned, but it did make me realise I liked you a lot more."

She sighed and plopped down on the edge of the bed. "Then I became worried about Andy. I mean, I know he'll be leaving soon, but it's still going to affect him. I know he likes you, but I wasn't sure how he would feel about us being together."

Leonard sat down next to her. "I hadn't really thought about that," he admitted.

Penny smiled at him. "Why should you? He's my son, not yours. Besides," she bumped her shoulder against his, "I get the feeling your mind was preoccupied with other things."

Leonard chuckled again. "Yeah, it was. I was busy telling myself I shouldn't kid myself into thinking there was anything other than friendship going on between us." He looked at her as her hand came to rest on his forearm.

"Leonard, you're a great guy. Why wouldn't I want something more than friendship? Besides, I was definitely trying to get your attention last night and this morning I was _this_ close to just push you on the bed and ride you. Okay, that's not flirting, but it shows I'm attracted to you."

"You were?"

Penny nodded with a grin. "When I sat on your bed last night, I was definitely putting the girls on display. And before I left your room, I practically shoved my ass in your face. Even though that was an accident, I realized it almost immediately and was actually glad when the stupid object slipped from my fingers and rolled towards you."

"Huh," Leonard said, shaking his head. "I was convincing myself it was the alcohol."

"I doubt it," Penny said. "Granted, I haven't done much drinking in a while, but when I did, I drank quite a bit. I'd have to have quite a bit more to get tipsy."

Leonard grinned. "I do remember thinking you were a lot more stable on your feet." He sighed. "So, where do we go from here?"

Penny shrugged. "I don't know, really. I mean, I still want to ride you, but I feel like that would be too soon. I guess we just start out dating?"

Leonard nodded. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea. We already have a date tomorrow evening anyway." He wondered if it was bad that he wasn't the one to ask her out on a date. Sure, he hadn't even thought he had the tiniest of shots with her before she had accepted Jason's invitation, but shouldn't he be the one to ask her out? Besides, a first date spend with his friend wasn't the best way to start dating, was it? "But maybe we should go out on a date tonight? You know, just us?" It took him a few seconds before he dared to turn his head in her direction again, only to see a bright smile.

"I'd like that very much." She leaned over toward him and kissed him again. It was a sweet kiss, not too deep, but definitely not a 'we're just friends' kiss. "Leonard, try not to worry too much, okay? Let's just see how things are going."


	5. Chapter 5

Dinner and a movie. Nothing more, and certainly nothing to worry about. Still, Penny paced nervously around her living room, much to the annoyance of her son and Amber, the girl she had asked to babysit Andy. Both had asked her politely to just sit down and relax several times, but she never sat any longer than about a minute, before the nerves got the better of her once again and she resumed pacing until one of them would once again ask her to please sit down.

"Mom, you're getting all worked up for nothing. I'm guessing Dr. Hofstadter is even more nervous than you are."

She looked at her son and sighed. Andy was probably right; Leonard wasn't very sure of himself and still couldn't quite believe she even wanted to pursue a relationship with him. Undoubtedly he was a wreck right now. She moved back to the comfortable sofa and sat down. "You're probably right. But I haven't dated in a long time either."

Andy nodded. "I know and I do understand, even if I don't have any experience in dating whatsoever."

Penny smiled nervously. "Am I doing the right thing? Maybe going out isn't such a good idea. What if it doesn't work out?"

"What if it does," Andy countered, then sighed. "Mom, remember when I explained Shrödingers experiment to you?"

Penny furrowed her brow slightly. "That was the one with the cat, right?"

Andy nodded. "Yes."

Penny nodded, feeling proud she'd actually remembered which experiment it was. "The cat can be considered both dead and alive, until you open the box to see which it is."

Andy nodded once again. "Exactly. The same principle can be applied to your date with Dr. Hofstadter, and even a potential relationship."

Penny understood what her son was trying to tell her. "I will only know if this date's a good thing by actually going through with it." She pulled her son in for a hug. "You are so smart." After a few seconds she ended the hug and planted a kiss on his forehead. "Thank you, sweetie."

"You two have the weirdest conversations sometimes."

Penny grinned. "I guess we do. And again, thank you for agreeing to babysit at such short notice."

The eighteen year old smiled. "No problem. I didn't have any plans tonight besides studying. I can do that here, with the added benefit of this smart little man here to help me when I get stuck. After all, I'd like to at least get my high school diploma at the same time, even if I'm seven years older."

"Ugh, I'm going to be the only high school graduate with both his mother and his _babysitter_ there!"

Penny couldn't contain her laughter, but found herself in good company as Amber joined in. Right at that point the doorbell rang. "That must be him," Penny said, noticing it was just a few minutes before the agreed upon time. She grabbed the little make-up mirror she'd put in her purse, making sure her make-up was still the way it was supposed to be. Satisfied that it was, she returned the item and stood up.

"Home before midnight."

Penny stopped and turned toward Andy, noticing his wide grin. "If I get home that late, you better be in bed and asleep," she said with a smile. "See you tomorrow, sweetie."

* * *

Leonard glanced to his right again before shifting his attention back to the road. He'd been nervous on the way over to her house, uncertain about his idea for asking her out on an actual date, just the two of them. Nobody to back him up or help him out should he start to make a mess of the entire thing. When she opened the door, his nerves had only increased. Even though he had already concluded she was the most beautiful creature in the entire universe, this was the first time he'd seen her like this. 'Dressed to kill' was the term that had come to mind as his eyes drank in her appearance. And he was her target. His eyes went to his right upper leg when Penny placed her hand there, squeezing gently.

"Just relax, sweetie. Think of this whole date thing as Shrödinger's cat."

His eyes darted toward her face to be rewarded with an encouraging smile. He focused once again on the road. Her remark actually seemed to help as he felt the tension more or less disappearing. Once again he had been overthinking this date and its possibly outcome. It really lead nowhere, and she was right about comparing this to the famous quantum physics hypothesis. "I guess you're right. It's useless to keep going over hypothetical situations and outcomes."

"Exactly. I was doing the same thing while getting ready and then waiting for you. I was driving Andy and Amber crazy! And then Andy told me I could just consider this a different take on Shrödinger's experiment."

Hearing that she'd been as nervous and uncertain as he'd been helped him calm down even more. He glanced at her when she suddenly started to giggle.

"I briefly wondered if we could apply the experiment to kissing, but then I realized we've already proven that that particular cat is very much alive."

Leonard chuckled. "Yeah, it definitely is." He'd been replaying that kiss in his head for the better part of the afternoon. After he had officially asked her out on a date, they had talked for probably about half an hour, before deciding they shouldn't hang out all day, right before their first date. So he'd driven her home and had then returned to his apartment. With nothing important to do, his mind had automatically gone over the past twenty four hours, the kiss making the most appearances. He glanced at Penny and noticed she was smiling at him.

"Thinking about the kiss again?"

Leonard knew he was blushing, as the kiss had indeed popped up in his mind at the simple mention of it.

"It's okay, sweetie. I've been replaying it in my head _a lot_ this afternoon." She smiled brightly at him. "We have to do it again, soon."

* * *

Penny bit her lip as they walked toward Leonard's car to drive toward the movie theater. Dinner had been great, mostly because Leonard and her had been talking a lot, and she wanted more of that. Well, maybe not talking, per se, but just the two of them. Going to a movie theater didn't seem like a good idea to continue the date with. "Sweetie, I don't feel like going to the movies." She glanced at him and noticed he looked disappointed but resigned. Was he really so insecure that he thought she was breaking up with him? "I just wanna go somewhere where it's just the two of us," she clarified, pleased to see his demeanor change immediately.

Leonard unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for her. "Oh, okay. What do you suggest?"

"Well, the only place we'd have any privacy is your place." _After we've locked the door as soon as we're inside._ "I'm sure you have something on DVD we could watch, and we can still talk." _And cuddle, maybe even make out. No, strike that; definitely make out._ Penny got in the car and found it cute that he made sure nothing was sticking out, before gently closing the door for her.

"You seriously want to go to my place," Leonard asked once he was in the driver's seat.

Penny smiled at him then leaned over the center console to kiss him on the lips. "Leonard, when a girl asks you to take her to your place, don't question it."

Leonard smiled back. "Right."

Penny moved back into a sitting position and did up her seat belt, still smiling. Clearly Leonard was still doubting himself, something that she knew would pass as they were going to spend more time together. He was the total opposite from the guys she'd dated years ago, who'd always seemed overly confident; she found Leonard's shyness adorable. Not that she didn't want Leonard at some point to take control over a date, act more confident, but for now, she enjoyed the fact he let her decide on the course of action. _Will make it a lot easier to get in bed with him._ The stray thought made her blush, but luckily Leonard wouldn't be able to see it. They were _not_ going to have sex tonight, Penny reaffirmed to herself. But she had to admit that she didn't want to wait very long to take that step.

Penny placed her hand on his upper leg as they drove off, deliberately not looking in his direction as she started rubbing lightly. She was careful not to move her hand too much, and staying well away from his crotch, not wanting to distract him so much that he'd might cause a traffic accident. She knew they weren't too far from his apartment, probably only five minutes, and she intended to keep her hand on his upper leg until he'd parked the car. The drive was spent talking about the quality of the food at the restaurant he'd picked; he admitted he'd never actually gone to that place, and both agreed they wouldn't go back there again. The food wasn't bad, but both agreed it just didn't live up to the expectation one would get when seeing the place and how much they charged.

All the while she kept rubbing his upper leg with her hand, and she could see his physical reaction when she happened to glance in that particular direction. She was actually glad Leonard pulled into the small parking lot, knowing that once they were inside his apartment, they could just cuddle up and make out, her initial intention of talking and watching a movie already discarded.

When they walked toward the building's entrance, Penny grabbed his hand with both of hers, just wanting the physical contact as they made their way to his apartment. She maintained the close contact as they walked up the stairs, only releasing him to allow him to use his hand to retrieve the apartment keys from his pocket.

Penny felt excitement at the prospect of being in Leonard's apartment, with just the two of them, cuddled up on the couch. She was pretty sure they wouldn't see very much of whatever movie would be playing, Penny's mind completely focused on better activities to get to know each other better. She turned toward him as he closed the door, grabbing both of his hands, smiling at him. Leaning toward him, she planted a soft kiss on his lips.

* * *

Leonard felt nervous, the prospect of being with Penny in the apartment, just the two of them, not something he had expected or even considered beforehand. He had no idea how to proceed once the blonde would return from the bathroom. What movie should they watch? Did he even have movies a woman like Penny would like? He had fully expected to watch some romantic comedy at the movie theater and he knew for a fact there wasn't anything like that in the combined collection of DVDs Sheldon and he owned. No, most of them, if not all, fell squarely in the Sci-Fi or superhero category. God, this evening was going to be a disaster!

Even the drive over had been torture, physical torture. Penny's hand rubbing his leg had turned him on, and he really hoped Penny hadn't noticed that. Well, probably not, or she'd asked him to take her home instead. She most likely had no idea what the physical contact had done to him, or certainly not intended it like that.

"You okay, sweetie?"

Leonard turned toward the hallway as Penny moved into the livingroom area. "Uh, yeah. Just... thinking." He pointed to the collection. "Those are all the movies Sheldon and I own. I'm not sure what you'd like, so..."

Penny smiled and walked over to him. Once again Leonard found his hands grasped by hers, but this time she moved closer, guiding his hands around her waist before releasing them so her hands could go around his neck. "Leonard, I really don't care what movies you have."

Leonard was confused, his brain not ready to accept the signals he was being given. "What do you mean? Do you want to go home?" The question had barely left his mouth when Penny's lips covered his. It took him a few seconds to realize Penny was actually trying to coax his lips open to allow her tongue inside his mouth. His brain, finally catching up to what Penny meant, immediately shut down again as the kiss deepened.

"I don't want to go home yet," Penny assured him as the kiss ended. "I just seriously doubt we'll be seeing much of the movie."

* * *

Penny was still smiling as Leonard went into the bathroom. It was refreshing to go out with a guy who genuinely did not expect anything, even if the woman he'd been out with decided to spend the rest of the evening at his place. Or had rubbed his upper leg all the way over. She quickly retrieved her phone and went to her contacts. "Hey, Amber, it's Penny." She waited as Amber asked if everything was alright. "Oh, yeah, definitely. Hey, would you mind having to spend the night in the guestroom?" She smiled at Amber's teasing that everything seemed more than alright. Luckily, the teenager had no problem staying over and Penny changed the subject and asked how things were going, mostly because she'd heard the toilet flush. She hadn't quite made up her mind yet about staying over, but she was leaning toward that decision. And now at least she knew she didn't _have_ to go home, making it a lot easier once she did decide.

Penny nodded and smiled brightly. "Great, glad things are going well and that you two are enjoying your evening. And, Amber, thank you again for doing this." She listened as the girl told her again she didn't mind, and Penny said goodbye to both her son and Amber.

"Checking if everything was alright at home?"

Penny smiled up at Leonard as he walked towards the couch. "Yeah, though I'm not really that worried. Both Andy and Amber are smart, and both excel at martial arts. Believe me, if anyone tries something, they're going to regret it, especially with Amber. That girl is freakishly strong. But if they have the option, I know they would get out of the house and go to one of the neighbors, instead of trying to defend themselves."

Leonard smiled back, but seemed a little unsure. "So, uhm, no movie?"

Penny shrugged. "I doubt we'll see much of it. How about we just turn on the TV so we have something to watch in between our make-out sessions." Her response only seemed to make him even more nervous. "Sweetie, just come sit here," she said, patting the seat beside her. She was pleased when he did what she asked. "Honey, I love you, and I'm pretty sure you feel the same way about me."

"I do," Leonard replied. "It's just..." He sighed. "I'm not used to a relationship starting so effortlessly."

"I wouldn't say effortlessly," Penny said, not able to let the opportunity to tease him go. "I'm putting a lot of effort in." That elicited a smile from him. "Leonard, I already told you this morning I'm attracted to you. But to me there's more than just the physical attraction. I feel this connection between us that goes way beyond that."

Leonard turned toward her. "I do too. It just confuses me because it's usually not reciprocated until after I basically wear the woman I was interested in down. That probably also explains why it never lasted very long."

"Well, lucky for me none of them realised what they had," Penny said truthfully. She scooted closer to him and pressed her lips against his, once again taking the lead on deepening the kiss.

* * *

Leonard was sure he had died and gone to heaven. The evening had been spent watching some TV in between frequent and long make out sessions, with Penny straddling his legs during most of them. He was sure she'd felt his physical response on more than one occasion, but never mentioned it.

During the times they weren't making out, she always placed her head on his shoulder and either held his hand or rubbed his leg as they watched whatever was on TV. It was obvious Penny was a passionate woman and not afraid to show her passion and affection in a physical manner.

Happy as he'd been, he'd been dreading the moment he'd have to take her home. Not that he had expected her to spend the night or for anything to happen - he hadn't even expected the multitude of make out sessions - but he hadn't been looking forward to being separated from her. He'd been very surprised when she asked if she could stay with him tonight, assuring him her babysitter had already agreed to stay in her guestroom.

He had immediately offered to sleep on the couch, offering her his bed, but she had insisted they could share his bed. He'd immediately promised her nothing would happen, completely taken off guard when she said she wasn't promising the same. He'd shown how much of a genius he was by questioning if such activities weren't usually postponed until the third date. She'd teased him about it being a rule, not a law, but she was willing to consider both their trip to the mall and dinner last night at her place as dates.

Well, at the time Leonard had thought she had been teasing about the possibility of sex, but now, as Penny proceeded to take off her dress, revealing nothing but smooth skin and a thong, he was starting to think she hadn't been teasing at all. He became more sure of it as she removed her thong as well. The whole situation was unprecedented; not once had a woman initiated anything, most certainly not sex. But here was this blonde woman - beautiful, smart and nice - seemingly getting ready to get in bed with him with the intend of sex. There was no other explanation, not when she pulled a packet of condoms out of her handbag.

"I guess you still didn't quite believe me, huh?"

Leonard just shook his head, his eyes taking in her naked form. "No, I really didn't."

Penny climbed on the bed, facing him. "Listen, Leonard. I really like you. A lot. I'm not saying I know this… you know, us… is going to work. I just know that every minute I've spend with you has been amazing. Regardless of this working out or not, I just feel right about taking this step tonight."

"I do have feelings for you," Leonard said. "I just want to reiterate that I don't expect anything to happen tonight. Of course," he continued with a grin, "I'm not going to say no."

Penny pressed herself against him, her hands once again resting behind his neck, as she kissed him deeply. "Sweetie," she said when the kiss ended, "you have too much clothes on."


	6. Chapter 6

Penny smiled as she awoke, an arm draped over her side, the hand attached to it flat against her belly. As amazing as the evening and the makeout sessions had been, it couldn’t hold a candle to the night they had just had. Leonard had been surprised at first at her bold move, but had then surprised her by focusing on her, making sure she got exactly what she needed and wanted. His own needs had almost seemed like an afterthought to him. She barely contained the giggle as she thought about how vocal she’d been and how often.

And that was only their first time together. They’d woken up only two hours later and had a, according to Leonard, quicky, for which he had even apologized. Well, compared to the first time, one could consider the second session a quicky, but even that one had been longer than any of her previous experiences, and she had assured Leonard he had nothing to apologize for.

And then about two hours ago, Penny had awoken again and, noticing Leonard’s sleep induced state, had grabbed another condom and taken full control of the situation. That time had Leonard really surprised, waking up just as Penny had sank down on him. She’d been really impressed with him and his control; despite her actions, he refused to be selfish and managed to hold out until she once again entered a blissful state.

Definitely a night to remember. Even taking into account the fact it had been a long time since she’d shared a bed with anyone, Penny knew that what she’d shared with Leonard was far more special. Of course, most of her previous experiences had involved guys who’d either been just as inexperienced as she’d been, or only interested in doing it with her.

No, with Leonard it had been special. With Leonard there was a constant feeling of love, feeling loved by him. Even that last session, despite it having started out with just lust. There was just no doubt about it, in her mind. Leonard loved her. Completely. It made her feel warm inside, the realization that he truly did love her. She never thought she actually craved finding a true love, someone to spend the rest of her life with. Now she knew she did. More importantly, she knew who she wanted to spend the rest of her life with: the man laying right behind her, holding her close, his breath against her neck.

* * *

Leonard awoke and found himself alone in the bed. If he hadn’t been able to feel the still warm spot next to his, he’d have thought last night had been nothing but a very vivid dream. Slowly, as his sleepy brain booted back up, he began to hear sounds from beyond the now closed bedroom door.

Locating his glasses, he put them on and then located and put on his robe. Opening the door, he heard music, a vaguely familiar song. Just as he entered the bathroom, the female singer declared she was feeling like a woman. Leonard frowned, as he knew he didn’t have that song in his collection and he was fairly certain Sheldon didn’t either. How did she get that song to play through their entertainment system? It took only a few seconds before Leonard decided to shrug it off; she’d probably learned a lot from Andy and had managed to figure out how to connect her iPhone through Bluetooth.

By the time Leonard walked out of the bathroom, another upbeat song was playing, one he didn’t recognise at all. He stopped himself from letting her know he was up when he saw her dancing happily through the kitchen, apparently making French toast while she danced. It took a few seconds, but he finally noticed she was wearing his button-up shirt and, by the looks of it, not much else. Of course, last night had shown him she hadn’t even been wearing a bra, so the only other thing she could be wearing was her thong. Whether she was or not, she looked incredibly sexy and adorable dancing around the kitchen, and Leonard just stood there watching her.

“Oh! Hi!”

Leonard forced his gaze upward to her face, feeling guilty for looking at her like that, without her even knowing he was standing there. “Uh, hi.” He walked toward the kitchen area now. “Making French toast, I see.” _Great job, Captain Obvious!_

Penny smirked. “As if you were looking at the food.”

For a brief moment Leonard was afraid she was angry with him, but he recognised the teasing tone in her voice. “Well, no,” he answered. “I just didn’t think it was a good idea to point it out.”

Penny had moved closer to him, her wrists landing on his shoulders. Leonards hands went to her sides as they kissed for a few seconds. “Glad you’re awake,” Penny said when the kiss ended. “I’m almost done.”

Leonard sat down at the kitchen island, watching Penny as she continued preparing breakfast, a warm feeling spreading inside him at the normalcy the situation exuded, despite his lack of actual experience with any kind of normalcy when it came to relationships.

“Did you wanna spend the day together, or should we do the being-separate-before-our-date thing again?”

Leonard looked up, berating himself for once again focusing on her ass. “Oh, uhm, I don’t know. I mean, yesterday I just figured that before our first real date we should have some time apart. You know, so we wouldn’t run out of things to talk about.” He looked down briefly. “Anyway, we won’t have to worry about that tonight, since we’d be visiting with others.”

Penny smirked as she put a plate in front of him. “You know, spending time together doesn’t necessarily mean we’d be talking much. But we might need more condoms.”

Leonard gaped at her, not having expected her to want even more sex, after no less than three rounds last night. To Leonard, that already was a record, but to think she wanted even more was just unbelievable. Not that he was going to complain.

 

* * *

As she was introduced to Jason’s girlfriend Miranda, Penny had to work hard to not laugh at the odd combination of the hulk of a man and the petite woman. When she had met Jason the first time, he had commented Miranda would kill him if he was going to be late, and in her mind she thought that meant Miranda would seriously stand a chance to at least hurt him.

“You weren’t lying, Jason,” Miranda said. “She’s definitely a hottie.”

Penny grinned when Jason blushed at his girlfriend repeating what he’d told her. Before she had a chance to say something, Miranda pulled on her arm.

“Come with me, Penny. Let the guys deal with the food preparations while we get to know each other better.”

Penny raised an eyebrow as she glanced in Leonard’s direction, who simply shrugged at her and followed his large friend toward the kitchen. Penny followed Miranda, although she really didn’t have choice as the woman hadn’t let go of her arm at all. “This is a nice place,” Penny commented as they approached the sofa, not really knowing what else to say.

“Most certainly is,” Miranda said. “Too bad it’s not mine or Jason’s.”

“Oh?” Penny sat down in the loveseat Miranda had more or less pushed her in, while Miranda sat in the corner seat of the larger sofa, placed at an angle.

“I’m just housesitting for two months.” She shook her head. “Man, it’s going to be hard going back to my small apartment in a week or two. Oh, do you want a drink? I totally forgot to ask.”

Penny giggled. “That’s okay. If you have some wine, I’d like a glass of that.”

“Sure, no problem,” Miranda said with a smile and stood up to retrieve the wine.

Penny took the time to look around room in more detail, wondering who Miranda was housesitting for. Must be someone who had quite a bit of money, considering all the expensive objects and paintings she could see. Penny was proud of her own place; she might not be as wealthy as the owner of this house, but she earned a decent living and she’d never had to deny her son or her self anything. Nonetheless, she felt a little bit envious of the owner of this house.

“Here we are,” Miranda said as she walked back into the living room, carrying two glasses of red wine.

Penny quickly located the coasters and placed them on the table.

“Thanks,” Miranda said, placing the glasses on the coasters, before sitting down once again.

“You think it’s a good idea to leave the men in charge of cooking,” Penny asked. Not that she wanted to cook, knowing she wasn’t any good at it.

Miranda nodded. “Oh, yeah. Jason is an amazing cook, and Leonard’s not bad either. Me, on the other hand, couldn’t cook even if my life depended on it.”

Penny grinned. “I know what that’s like. I’m glad I have a decent job so I can afford getting take-out almost daily.”

Miranda laughed. “Wow, didn’t think we’d have that in common. All the women I know are at least decent cooks, some even tried to teach me, but I always screwed it up somehow. If it wasn’t for Jason, I might actually have starved to death by now. So, how did you and Leonard meet?”

“Oh, my son, Andy, wanted to see this lecture Leonard was giving. Then afterwards I went to the bathroom and Andy saw Leonard walking by, and decided to ignore my instructions to stay put and walked toward him so he could ask some questions.”

“How old is he,” Miranda asked.

“He’s eleven now and about to graduate high school.”

“Aha, a smart kid, then,” Miranda said. “So, that’s how you got introduced?”

Penny nodded, taking a sip of wine. “Yeah. Andy wanted to know more, and Leonard invited us to his lab where we stayed for maybe half an hour. We then traded contact info, so Andy would have some way to talk to Leonard on any of the sciency stuff.” Penny continued on, telling Miranda about the trip to the mall, seeing each other at the Thai place, how Leonard had stayed in her guest room, everything that Penny deemed appropriate the share with other people.

Miranda nodded when Penny finished, appearing to be having a discussion with herself. “Penny,” Miranda started, but didn’t continue.

“What’s wrong,” Penny asked, getting worried that perhaps she had said too much.

Miranda sighed. “Nothing. It’s just that... I’ve known Leonard for almost six years, ever since Jason moved across from him and his crazy roommate. I think he’s a great guy and a good friend. The thing is, sometimes he can do or say something that scares away the woman he loves.”

Penny giggled. “You mean like writing an eleven page ‘thank you’ letter for... Never mind.”

Miranda smirked. “Jason told me you were a loud one.”

Penny felt herself blush. “He heard that?”

Miranda nodded, now grinning broadly. “He said the entire building probably heard you.”

Penny covered her face with her hands. “Oh, God.” She felt Miranda’s hand land on her arm.

“Don’t worry, Penny. Not many of them know who was having sex and believe me when I say even less will even suspect it was coming from Leonard’s room.”

“Jason knew,” Penny said, but lowering her hands anyway.

Miranda nodded. “He only suspected that because he’d seen you with Leonard before and he just happened to get home, so he knew it was coming from Leonard’s apartment. Anyway, my point is, Leonard might do something that makes you want to dump him...”

“I wouldn’t,” Penny said, already convinced she would never leave him unless she caught him cheating on her. From what she knew of him, and was now hearing from Miranda, it seemed very unlikely it would ever come to that. “I thought the letter was cute and sweet, even though I’ve only read a small part during the trip over.”

Miranda didn’t look very convinced. “You haven’t met Sheldon yet. Oh, or his mother.”

It was hard to miss the shudder and Penny frowned. “What about his mother? Is she a person who thinks nobody is good enough for her son?”

“She’s a person not worthy of the title ‘mom’”

Penny’s frown deepened, surprised at the obvious disgust she could hear in the woman’s statement. “Why? What did she do?”

“The cold-hearted clinical bitch seems to take great pleasure in putting down her son. Not that she’s all warm and fuzzy with her other two kids, or even her husband, but at least she doesn’t put them down at every opportunity.”

 

* * *

“Is something wrong,” Leonard asked, glancing at Penny once more. She’d been unusually quiet most of the evening, not even saying a word since they’d said goodbye to Jason and Miranda.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Penny assured him, then went quiet again for maybe half a minute. “Can I stay tonight?”

Leonard turned briefly in her direction. “Uhm, while I certainly won’t mind, Sheldon’s home by now and he would not appreciate me bringing a house guest without the required twelve hour notice.”

“Ugh, you need a normal roommate,” Penny said and Leonard noticed it was the first time tonight she actually smiled a little. “In that case, I want you to stay with me tonight. Andy’s staying over at Rick’s again, so we have the entire house to ourselves.”

Leonard grinned, suddenly feeling like the richest man on the planet. “Don’t want to be without me, huh?”

Penny shook her head. “Not really, no. Actually, you staying at my place is even better, since the neighbors won’t... whatever.”

Leonard’s head snapped toward her, a surprised look on his face. “We weren’t that loud, were we?”

Penny nodded. “Jason told Miranda the entire building could’ve heard us. Well, me, apparently.” She turned to him, grinning. “So, your reputation is still intact.”

Leonard laughed. “Well, I wouldn’t really mind if people started to think I was any good in bed.” He wouldn’t normally say such a thing, but the fact that Penny seemed in much better spirits and willing to talk, he decided that being forward was in this case acceptable.

“Oh, you definitely are good in bed. You kept me nice and warm and you don’t even snore,” Penny said, sticking out her tongue at him, causing Leonard to laugh again.

“So, I’m a non-snoring bed warmer to you. Good to know.”

“On a whole, it’s not such a bad thing,” Penny responded, apparently enjoying this little teasing banter.

Leonard was just glad her mood seemed to have improved considerably, though he still didn’t quite understand why she’d been so quiet. Was it something he’d said or done? He didn’t think so, but most of his previous relationships had ended because of something he’d done wrong. “Penny, did I do something wrong earlier?” He dared to look at her briefly, noticing she seemed surprised.

“No, of course not! Why do you ask?”

“Well, you’ve been really quiet most of the evening and I just assumed...”

“Sweetie, you assumed wrong.”

Leonard frowned, again glancing in her direction briefly. She’d sounded as if she was upset he even thought such a thing. “Then why? You don’t strike me as the quiet type, even when in company of virtual strangers.”

“It’s just... Miranda told me about your mother.”

Leonard glanced at his leg, when Penny’s hand landed there.

“Leonard, has she really never shown any pride in what you have accomplished?”

Leonard looked at Penny in surprise. “Uhm, well, no.”

“So, she really is cold-hearted and distant?”

Leonard could hear Penny was really upset by learning about his mother. “Well, yeah, I guess. It’s okay, though.”

“How can you say that? She should be so proud of you and your accomplishments! She should’ve been there for you when you were bullied. I mean, just thinking about how hard it was for Andy, even if it didn’t happen to him for that long... You needed someone back then, I know you did. She should’ve been there for you.”

Leonard glanced at Penny again, then briefly moved his right hand from the steering wheel to land on top of her hand, still on his leg. “Penny, it’s really okay. I’m used to how Mother treats, well, everyone, basically.”

“That doesn’t make it okay,” Penny persisted. “Ugh, it really creams my corn to know how your mom treated you. And still does.”

* * *

“Oh, hello Leonard.”

Penny stood awkwardly near the apartment door, suddenly feeling that accompanying Leonard to pack an overnight bag might have been a bad idea. Especially considering that Miranda had told her that Leonard’s roommate was sometimes as bad as Leonard’s mother.

“Hey, buddy,” Leonard greeted his roommate, then turned briefly towards her. “Penny, this is my roommate Sheldon, Sheldon, this is Penny, my, uhm...”

Penny smiled at Leonard’s hesitance to finish the sentence. “Girlfriend,” she decided to help him out, adding a small wave of her hand at Sheldon, knowing the man was a germaphobe and didn’t like to be touched or shaking hands. “Hi.”

“Leonard, you know that the roommate agreement states that you have to provide twelve hours notice on any impending coitus. Or did you not known this one either twelve hours ago?”

Penny frowned at Sheldon’s question, both the inappropriateness of asking this in front of her, as well as the fact Leonard had apparently had sex with someone he hadn’t known for more than twelve hours.

“Oh, come one, Sheldon. That was just one time!”

“That is true, and it turned out it was just a ruse to obtain information on the top secret military research you were doing. Are you sure this is not the case with this woman?”

Leonard glanced at her briefly. “Yes, I am. Penny hasn’t shown the slightest interest in what I do exactly. Besides, I’m not even working on anything confidential right now.” He sighed. “We just came by so I could pack an overnight bag since I’ll be staying at Penny’s tonight.”

“Alright, as long as you can assure me you’ll be here on time to drive me to work.”

Penny rolled her eyes, already having enough of Sheldon’s controlling behavior. “Can’t you just take the bus?”

Sheldon finally addressed her directly. “I can, I just prefer not to. Furthermore, the roommate agreement specifically states...”

“Screw the roommate agreement,” Penny interjected. “Leonard’s staying at my place tonight and he’s _not_ going to get up extra early so that he has time to pick you up.”

“Excuse me, but you are not a party in the roommate agreement, therefore you have no say in the matter.”

“I think I do have a say,” Penny answered. “If Leonard has to get up earlier, so do I, so it affects me as well. Either you take the bus in the morning, or accept loud coitus tonight.”

“Leonard, this is not acceptable! You signed the roommate agreement, a binding contract. Furthermore, we’ve been friends longer than...”

Penny was getting ticked off with Leonard’s roommate, and she decided to not hold back, hoping Leonard wouldn’t be too upset with her later. “Some friend you are! You don’t make demands on your friends, you ask them politely.”

“But I always ask him politely,” Sheldon asserted, causing Penny to just stare at him open mouthed for a few seconds, not quite certain if he actually believed that or was just trying to get away with it. She glanced at Leonard, who just shook his head in apparent defeat. If there relationship wasn’t as young as it was, she would have told him he could move in with her, without having to sign anything.

“It’s okay, Penny. You won’t have to get up when I do, I’ll just be quiet.”

Penny sighed. “Alright, but you better take your copy of this roommate agreement. A friend of mine is a very good lawyer and I’m sure he’ll have no trouble poking holes in that damn thing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That took me long enough, didn't it? For some reason I couldn't get the end of the chapter the way I wanted to. But I made it, eventually. And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about, or abandoned any of my other stories, I just generally have limited time to write, thus it can take me a long time every now and then.


	7. Chapter 7

"Look, Leonard," Penny said excitedly as she walked into his lab, holding up the item she'd purchased earlier that morning. "The perfect gift for that wackadoodle you live with!"

Leonard took the box with a frown. "Headphones?"

Penny grinned. "Yep. But not just any headphones, they're the noise cancelling ones! That way, if I stay over we can have as much sex as we want, without him ever hearing it."

Leonard grinned as well, but Penny soon saw it morph back into a frown. "Sheldon doesn't like getting gifts."

Penny rolled her eyes. "Seriously, you need another roommate. Okay, enlighten me, why does the great doctor Cooper dislike getting a gift? Is it because someone else touched the package?"

Leonard grinned. "No, though I'm surprised he didn't think of that, considering his germ phobia. To him, the act of gift giving is a contract, forcing him to reciprocate with a gift of similar value, both monetary and perceived."

"Hmmph, I really hope my friend finds some good loopholes in that contract. I do not want to be woken up early in the morning, just so you get to pick up Sheldon before work." Penny stepped closer to Leonard, placing her hands behind his neck and kissed him. "Some things I don't mind being woken up for, though," she added after the kiss.

Leonard grinned. "I'll keep that in mind."

Penny initiated another kiss, enjoying the feeling of being held close against Leonard as their tongues dueled inside their mouths and his arms wrapped lightly around her waist.

"I'm glad you decided to visit me on your day off," Leonard said when the kiss had ended.

Penny smiled. "Well, I haven't seen you since Monday morning. I figured I might as well stop by so we can have lunch together."

"Sure, I'd love that. Did you have a place in mind?"

"Uhm, no, not really. How's the food here?"

Leonard frowned. "Really? You wanna have lunch in the cafeteria here?"

Penny shrugged. "Why not. It's close so we cut down on travel time." She pressed her lips against his, deepening the kiss quickly. "Plus," she added, breathing a bit heavier, "it gives us some time for other activities." The statement was followed by another kiss, while her hands were slowly moving over his body. "Your door locks, right?"

"Huh? Uh, yeah."

Penny simply nodded an acknowledgement, released Leonard, and walked over to the door, closing and locking it. "Take of your clothes."

* * *

Leonard couldn't wipe the grin of his face even if it would save his life. Glancing to his side, he noticed Penny seemed as happy as he was. She had initiated it, claiming that she couldn't stand going without sex any longer. It had definitely surprised him, the whole notion of someone actually _wanting_ to do that with him decidedly non-standard. And he'd definitely never expected to do that in his lab, or anywhere but in the privacy of a bedroom or maybe a hotelroom.

When he'd realized he didn't have protection he'd tried to back out, but Penny had been quick to inform him she had taken care of business and would be good for a while. That little bit of information indicated Penny was actually expecting they'd be having sex for the foreseeable future.

"Certainly worked up an appetite now, after our activities," Penny said suddenly, though thankfully soft enough that only he could hear it.

Leonard grinned. "Yeah, I could definitely eat something right now."

Penny grinned back at him while she took hold of his hand, linking their fingers. "Yeah, I could eat a horse! Well, you know, if I wasn't a vegetarian."

Leonard looked at today's offering on the menu as they queued up. "Well, no horse on the menu," he joked after a couple of seconds.

"No, but quite a few good options," Penny observed. "I think I'm getting the Mac 'n' Cheese."

"Well, as you know, cheese and I are not very good friends," Leonard said, not needing to explain his comment as he had told her he was lactose intolerant, "so I'm going for the salad."

"The salad? I don't think so, Mister. You need to eat something that'll give you some energy for tonight. We've got the house all to ourselves again, and I plan on making good use of that good fortune."

To say Leonard was surprised to hear this, was an understatement. Already having had sex today, he did not expect Penny to already plan for more tonight. Then again, that first night, almost a week ago, she had proven her healthy libido by initiating it three times over the course of a couple of hours, so perhaps this shouldn't have been such a big surprise at all. "Right. Maybe I'll have the Beefaroni instead."

It took a couple of minutes before they could finally get their order and pay for it, all the while Penny standing close to him, one hand holding his, the other rubbing his back, an arm or wherever she felt like. Leonard knew it was a bit childish to feel smug every time he caught an envious look from the other men around him. But it really wasn't his fault the gorgeous woman - standing so close to him there wasn't even room for a molecule to be in between them - had decided she liked him that way. Nor that she wasn't afraid to publicly show to everyone they were together. Even during the walk from the register to the seating area she kept one hand to him.

Leonard noticed Howard and Raj sitting at a table of four and he automatically started in that direction but slowed down as he remembered Penny wasn't exactly a big fan of the two, and with good reason. He looked around quickly, hoping to find another table in the general direction he'd been going.

"It's okay, Leonard," Penny murmured. "They're your friends, and I'm sure they know now not to upset me or oggle me like that."

Leonard grinned, but felt he needed to caution her. "I don't know about that last part, though. Howard's... uhm... special that way."

"Well, if he creeps me out too much, I'll touch him in his special place. And not at all like the way I touch your special place," she added, smirking a little.

Leonard chuckled, knowing full well Penny would definitely make good on the threat. "Make sure you explain that to him," he said softly. "Hello, boys," he said out loud to Howard and Raj as they reached the table.

* * *

Penny shook her head as she got into her car. She loved Leonard, but his friends and colleagues were just plain weird, creepy, or both. Even though Howard had been on his best behavior, she had noticed his glances at her top. Raj had been quiet, of course, unable to talk in the presence of any woman he wasn't related to, and had kept to himself for the duration of their lunch.

Then Elmer Fudd had shown up, and boy, if she had thought Howard was creepy, this guy redefined the term. He had taken up a position next to her, slightly behind, offering him an unobstructed view down her top, which she was sure he had taken full advantage off, judging by Leonard's disapproving glare at Elmer. When he had bent over to tell her earnestly that when she was done with little league to come see him, she'd made clear to him she would not take him up on the offer the only way she deemed appropriate: she'd swung her arm hard into his midsection. Daddy didn't call her slugger for nothing!

Despite Howard and Elmer, Penny still considered her visit to Leonard's place of work a great idea, not in a small part due to their activities in his lab just before lunch and the make-out session after lunch. Leonard had been really surprised when she'd locked his door and instructed him to take of his clothes. He had admitted he'd never had fooled around in his lab, which Penny had loved hearing, knowing she'd be his first and hopefully only experience with sex in his lab. She smirked at the thought that this might have been a nice start to a list of places. Not that she had much experience with sex in other places, her list currently limited to a few times in the back of a car, her bed, Leonard's bed and, as of an hour ago, Leonard's lab. But she was definitely looking forward to extending that list with new, exciting places. Just with Leonard, obviously.

She had to rid her mind of those thoughts so that she could focus on driving home safely, Penny realized as she passed a crossing, not entirely sure if the light had actually been green. Glancing in the rear view mirror, she could already see traffic crossing from left to right, so the light had probably been red, or maybe yellow. _Stop thinking about Leonard_ she admonished herself.

Perhaps they could start extending their list by doing it in every room of her house? They did have an entire weekend after all. _Damn, horny much?_ Well, she was, she admitted to herself. _And what happened to not thinking about Leonard_. Well, it was hard _not_ to think about him, especially having sex with him. Leonard may be shy and insecure, but he definitely knew what he was doing in that area, and he did it very well.

That was a very big difference from her experiences from before Andy was conceived, limited in number that had been. Of course, back then she and the guy hadn't had a clue as to what they were doing, but it wasn't like she had gained any experience since then, Leonard technically being the first since Andy's conception. And Leonard wasn't overly experienced either, yet he seemed to know how to please a woman. Penny frowned. That wasn't exactly true, was it? Leonard had been really unsure after their first time, worried she hadn't achieved the blissful state and had instead pretended to not hurt his feelings. Perhaps it was just something with the two of them that made things so good?

It certainly seemed that way. Even if Leonard had a little more experience than she had, she knew from his friends his relationships in general hadn't lasted very long. She couldn't imagine anyone having received the level of pleasure Leonard had given her, would've willingly walked away from that. Yet, they had, Penny knew; all of Leonard's previous relationships had been broken off by the woman he'd been in a relationship with at the time.

" _The thing is, sometimes he can do or say something that scares away the woman he loves._ " Miranda's confession from last Sunday came back to her. Could it really be so bad it would drive anyone away from him? Could it drive her away? She had been adamant to Miranda she would never dump him, but a little bit of doubt started to form. Penny shook her head. She was being silly and nervous over nothing, she told herself. Leonard was a great guy, something those other women - luckily for her - hadn't realized.

Or perhaps they had been afraid of commitment and all Leonard had done was profess his love for them. Some women just had commitment issues, even if that was more common for men than women. That was probably it, Penny decided, easing her own mind. After all, why else would anyone leave the sweetest man she'd ever known?

* * *

Leonard exhaled loudly as he caught himself once again looking at the workbench next to the lab door. He'd been looking at it regularly for the past few hours, reliving the activities that had taken place just before lunch. As a result, his afternoon had been less than productive. He checked the time, realizing he might as well start his weekend a little early. It was a good thing he had managed early on in the week to have Sheldon brought home by Raj, providing ample time for Sheldon to prepare for the change.

Leonard entered his car almost fifteen minutes early, but considering the amount of overtime he had accumulated, it was unlikely the university would consider this a problem. He didn't think Penny would mind either, considering her earlier remarks. He still couldn't quite believe this was all really happening, but for once he decided not to put too much thought into it, something he knew he tended to do. So far Penny had shown clearly that she at the very least liked him a lot, giving him no reason to entertain thoughts about any of the multitude of bad scenarios he knew he would conjure up with ease.

It was the surprisingly light traffic that allowed him to park in her driveway a good twenty minutes earlier than he had anticipated. Penny opened the door with a smile before he had even reached it. Her arms went around his neck and she kissed him deeply, sighing as the kiss ended. "I missed you," she breathed. Leonard just grinned widely, enjoying the very warm welcome he had just received. He then noticed her glance over his shoulder, smiling brightly and he turned to see who or what was making her smile.

"Hi, Mrs. Gallaghan," Penny greeted the woman, then introduced him to her neighbor. Leonard politely shook her hand, glancing back at Penny as she added "my boyfriend." Not just 'friend,' as he had expected, but 'boyfriend'. They hadn't discussed this before, they hadn't even said 'I love you' to one another.

"My nephew will be very disappointed to hear that," Penny's neighbor said. "You know he wants to be with you forever."

Leonard frowned, not quite sure what to make of that remark. Was that the reason Penny had introduced him as boyfriend? To ward off another attempt by her neighbor to be hooked up to a nephew? Or was this Penny's way of making her neighbor's nephew jealous, and she really wanted him? She wouldn't do that, would she?

He was probably tall and good-looking too, Leonard thought glumly. Probably worked out a lot and be all muscles, and, admittedly, probably a much better match for Penny anyway. He wondered how long it would be before Penny would break up with him and run to her dream man. Would she ever think of him again? Would the two of them laugh at their wedding as they remembered the short nerd who actually believed he'd had a shot with her? Would she even remember him at all?

He suppressed a sigh. Another relationship that seemed to be over before it had even started. Maybe Howard and Raj had been right to mock him the first time they met Penny. He might not have any brainwashing powers, but the supposed relationship was clearly based on a ruse. He'd probably never hear the end of it from his friends.

He was so caught up in his doomsday scenario that he had completely missed the short conversation that had been taken place, and only refocused on the here and now when the neighbor said her goodbyes and crossed the street. He followed Penny inside, not sure what to do next. If Penny was indeed just using him, he should probably get out, before he would be hurt even more.

Penny was pushed up against him as soon as the front door was closed, her mouth hungrily connecting with his, confusing Leonard. Was she still pretending? Why would she? Obviously the guy she really wanted would hear back from his aunt soon enough. This just didn't make any sense whatsoever. He looked at Penny, as the latter seemed to sense something was wrong, a frown forming.

"Leonard? What's wrong?" Her expression changed to one of realization. "Oh, God, did I jump the gun with the whole 'boyfriend' thing? I know we haven't discussed our exact status yet, but I thought you felt the same way? Listen, we can just go back to being friends and just do the dating thing." She smirked. "Well dating and having lots of hot sex."

"What about your neighbor's nephew," Leonard asked.

Penny moved her head slightly further away, looking at him all confused again. "What about him?"

Leonard averted his gaze, no longer able to look her in the eyes while she was looking at him. "Well, he wants to spend the rest of his life with you. I just thought that..." He stopped talking as Penny started to laugh.

"Leonard," she said once she got the laughter under control, yet still smiling broadly. "The kid's ten years old. I don't think you have to worry about me running of with him."

Leonard exhaled in relief. "Oh, that's good to know. In my head you were using me to try and make him jealous or something." He was about to kiss Penny, glad his doom scenario wasn't even close to reality, when she suddenly pushed away from him.

"What the hell?! You really think I'd go out with you to make someone else jealous?! Damn it, Leonard! We had sex, for God's sake! Do you think I'm a slut?!"

Leonard only stared at her, not quite sure how to respond. To his dismay, Penny retreated even further, her eyes filled with hurt and anger.


	8. Chapter 8

"What? No, Penny, that's not what I meant!"

Penny took another step back as Leonard tried to approach her. How could he think so lowly of her? "You were the first guy I slept with since Andy was conceived!"

Leonard sighed, but kept his distance. "Look, this has nothing to do with you, or how I feel about you. I just... It's just hard for me to believe you'd want to be with me, when you can literally get any guy."

Penny tilted her head, frowning, not quite sure what to make of his statement, or how to respond. She did realise she should try and keep her anger and hurt from clouding her judgement; if she wasn't careful, their relationship might end very quickly.

Leonard seemed frustrated at her lack of response. "Look, we've only been out once, and you got hit on _three_ times! And all three were much better looking, not too mention taller and muscular."

"So?"

"So," he repeated, eyebrows raised in disbelieve. "So, it's kinda hard to believe you'd want to be with me, when you could have someone like them."

Penny exhaled loudly, getting frustrated again at Leonard's warped view. "How did I react with those guys?"

"Excuse me?"

Penny smiled slightly at his confusion, despite the seriousness of the conversation. "When I was hit on, how did I respond?"

"You shot them down immediately," Leonard answered. "But..."

"No," Penny interrupted him firmly, not giving him a chance to compare himself unfavorably to other men. "No buts, Leonard. I wasn't interested in them, I'm not interested in anyone but you." She sighed again, then took a step towards him. "Leonard, I love you."

His eyebrows rose up high. "You... you love me?"

Penny smiled again and closed the distance. "Yes, Leonard. I love _you_. I don't care that you're not tall." She placed her hands behind his neck. "I love you because of who you are." She placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "You're sweet." She kissed his chin. "Honest." A kiss on his other cheek. "Passionate about your job." She felt his arms go around her waist as she placed a kiss at the corner of his mouth. "Cute." She kissed him full on the mouth, anything else she wanted to say suddenly insignificant as her tongue sought entrance to his mouth. There were other ways she could explain to him how she felt about him, how important he had already become to her.

* * *

Leonard started to smile as soon as he awoke, Penny tucked in tightly against him, her arm loosely draped across his body. He wondered what the time was, but without his glasses he really couldn't read the alarm clock's display. Judging from the sunlight he could see coming through the small crack between the drapes, it was definitely morning. He wouldn't be surprised if it was past ten already considering the activities of last night, and again around three in the morning.

He had had more sex with Penny than he had in all his previous relationships combined, and they hadn't been together that long. He realized he was really lucky she hadn't dumped him, especially after inadvertently insulting her and doubting her honesty and feelings toward him. Obviously he hadn't really considered her behavior when his mind had conjured up this notion that she was just using him, a notion he now acknowledged wasn't a very logical one at all. If he really wasn't desireable to her, as he had convinced himself to be the case, why would her being with him make another guy jealous? He realized the irony of his tendency to overthink things, while at the same time not really thinking at all.

After Penny had convinced him she really loved him, and him alone, she had made him promise he would talk to her whenever he had doubts or insecurities regarding their relationship, instead of trying to process it by himself, and quite possibly thinking up doomsday scenarios that just weren't true. She promised in return she wouldn't fly off the handle, but really listen to him and try to help him get past it.

He was so glad this hadn't ended up like any of his previous relationships, which had all ended because of his stupidity. Well, not all, there was one he could blame entirely on Sheldon. Then again, Joyce hadn't really been interested in him and he could've been in a lot of trouble if Sheldon hadn't barged in that evening.

Leonard smiled as Penny mumbled something in her sleep, followed by her arm tightening around him, pulling herself even tighter against him. He was definitely one lucky bastard. He couldn't fathom anyone would make such an effort to save a relationship with him after being pretty much insulted, intentional or not. Yet, she'd continued their interrupted make-out session, which had in turn lead to something a lot more. And they hadn't moved away from the front door at all, Penny instead turning them around so her back was against the door.

Visions of last night replayed in his mind. After the front door activities, they had a nice dinner they'd prepared together followed by desert being licked off of each other, which had lead to sex on the dinner table. After cleaning up, they'd decided to watch a movie on Netflix, though they'd missed a lot due to the frequent kissing and Penny had eventually positioned herself in his lap and they had coupled once more right on the couch.

He knew they'd watched something after that, but he could literally not remember what it was as Penny hadn't stopped making out with him long enough to get into it. It was during their preparation to go to bed that Penny had initiated another session, this time in the bathroom. He had no clue how they had ended up in the empty bathtub by the end of it, with the shower curtain ripped off the rail and draped on top of them, but that had most definitely been the best sex he ever experienced.

That made for four times in less than twelve hours. Four times. That must be some kind of record; Leonard didn't think anyone would do it that often over such a short time span. Hell, he hadn't even had sex that often with anyone over the course of any of his, admittedly, short relationships.

"Hmm, someone's up."

Leonard turned his head toward Penny, wondering if he should feel guilty about being aroused so soon again. The thought evaporated at the desire he could see in her eyes.

* * *

Penny felt happier than she ever had. After Leonard's unfortunate words, they'd had ended up having an amazing evening. Waking up cuddled up to him had been even better. Of course her experience with sex had never included actually sleeping together, let alone waking up together the next morning, but there was no doubt in her mind that that part had a major contribution in her happiness. It really was amazing to wake up with someone you love, especially after a couple of spectacular physical connections.

When she'd awoken, Leonard had seemed lost in thoughts and for a moment she feared he was doubting himself again. Soon she noticed that a certain area of the covers was raised higher than the rest and realized he was probably reliving some memory from the preceding evening. It had got her going almost immediately and they had ended up initiating her bed. Quite literally, since it's only experience with sex had so far been her 'me' times. Even last week when Leonard had spend the night, they had ended up having sex on her couch and not the bed.

She looked through the kitchen window while preparing their brunch, her heart skipping at just seeing him relaxing in his pants and a t-shirt, doing something on his tablet. _He must workout at least sometimes. Look at his chest and arms!_ Penny shook her head; she was a bad cook to start with, and she didn't want to mess up something as easy as preparing brunch. No matter the very attractive distraction outside, she was going to focus on doing this right, and not poison him or something.

 _Relax, it's French toast, you can do this in your dreams. Enjoy the scenery._ Penny giggled at her inner voice. True, she was very experienced with making French toast, but she still didn't want to risk making either of them sick. There were still places they hadn't coupled in. Not that it would take the entire weekend, based on their progress so far, but perhaps they could hit most spots twice before Monday morning. _Okay, you've just turned the toast over, take another look._ Penny looked through the window once more. _Ooh, great timing!_ Leonard was just picking up the chair and moved it over so it was right next to the other one. Those chairs were pretty sturdy and heavy and she could see Leonard's arm muscles straining to lift the chair. _Mouth watering, right?_ "Hmm, definitely." Damn, she was replying out loud to her inner voice again.

Penny resolutely shifted her attention back to the French toast, knowing that if she didn't it would be a lot harder to do later, with a bad batch of French toast as the final result. No, it was just better to focus on the brunch now. After all there would be plenty of time both today and tomorrow to enjoy being together. And even though she was determined to have sex everywhere in the house, she was also looking forward just being with Leonard, spending time as a couple.

She smiled suddenly. Leonard had not been scared away about her introducing him as her boyfriend. That was a good thing, Penny thought. He clearly wasn't afraid of commitment, as she had feared on her way home yesterday. Then she frowned. Had he actually heard her saying boyfriend? Afterall, he had admitted his mind had been focused on something completely different. Did he even want to define their relationship so soon after it had started? Should she mention it to him, ask him how he felt about this?

"Uhm, Penny?"

With a start she turned toward the kitchen door. "Huh? What?" Her eyes went wide when the smell registered in her mind. "Oh crap!" She quickly transferred their brunch to the plates, turning over the toast as she did so. Luckily it was only a bit darker than it should be, but it didn't seem to be completely charred. "Uhm, it might be a little crispy," Penny said, looking at Leonard apologetically.

Leonard had moved toward her and looked at the plates. "Seems okay," he said. "Are you okay?"

Penny shrugged. "Sure, just a bit disappointed that I managed to mess up something as simple as this."

"Hey," Leonard said, pulling her into a hug. "It's not ruined, just a bit dark on one side. But that's not what I meant. You were lost in thoughts and frowning. Is something wrong, besides the food?"

"No," Penny answered, but noticing his doubtful look she added, "well, maybe." She paused for a few seconds, trying to find the right words, suddenly very nervous. "Yesterday I introduced you as my boyfriend, without discussing our exact status with you first. I'm not quite sure if you even picked up on it, or if you even want to make it so... so... you know? And like I said yesterday, I'd understand if you don't want to term us boyfriend-girlfriend. And really, I don't mind just dating and having sex for a while. It's just that I..." Leonard had pushed his lips against her, effectively shutting her up in a very enjoyable manner.

"Penny," Leonard began as soon as the kiss had ended. "I love you. And I'm very happy you want me to be your boyfriend and you're right, we should've discussed this yesterday."

"Well," Penny said, smiling slightly, "we did end up having a deep conversation, just not on this particular subject."

"As far as I'm concerned, we don't need a deep, long conversation on this subject. I've wanted to call you my girlfriend from the moment you made me realize how you felt about me."

"Really?"

* * *

Leonard shook his head once more, not quite believing what had just transpired. Right after brunch Penny had moved into his lap and they had made out. Much to his surprise however, Penny had started pushing for more, even though they were sitting outside in her backyard. He still wasn't quite sure how she had managed it, but they ended up having sex outside, despite his discomfort at the very real possibility of being seen by her neighbors. But Penny didn't seem to care about that at all. She had simply removed her top, revealing her topless form to him, and then continued to kiss him while her hands worked his zipper.

It had not been a wild ride like it usually was, but a sweet and tender love making session. In her backyard. He knew one neighbor was at home as they had heard him talk when they were still eating. Leonard wasn't quite sure if the man had gone inside, or if he had heard them, though Penny had remained relatively quiet.

"That was really nice," Penny said softly. "But we should get cleaned up and then we'll go shopping."

"Shopping?" Leonard wasn't a big fan of shopping, but he figured spending time with her was better than being alone, or worse, having to deal with Sheldon.

"Mm-hmm," Penny hummed as she kissed his neck. "Don't worry, it won't take very long, I promise." She must have seen doubt in his eyes when she looked at him. "Trust me, I have far more fun things in mind for us to do later."

Only a little over half an hour later they left her house. Penny insisted on walking, claiming the shopping mall was only fifteen minutes away. It was on that walk that Leonard discovered that Penny knew quite a few people in the neighborhood, and more importantly, people seemed to like her. Their walk was frequently interrupted as someone Penny knew wanted to talk to her. And every time Penny took the time to hear them out, offering her support if they needed it. And at every stop Penny had introduced him as her boyfriend, maintaining some kind of physical contact as she chatted with her friends and neighbors. It surprised him how many of them claimed they made a very cute couple, how they just seemed to belong together. It definitely removed any lingering doubt from his mind.

Even walking, Penny kept touching him, whether it was holding hands, or just a simple, almost unconscious caress of his arms or back. Whenever he actually looked at her, she would smile at him, and on many occasions she would actually stop him from walking so they could kiss.

Eventually they made it to the mall and, much to his surprise, her first stop was a comic book store. The owner immediately greeted her, clearly not surprised at seeing her. Leonard's jaw had almost dropped to the floor when she began discussing the previous issue of the Avengers, stating her disappointment at the chosen solution which she felt was a bit of a cop-out. It didn't take long for other shoppers to add to the discussion, but much to his surprise, they all seemed to really listen to her, instead of ogling. And almost nobody seemed to be afraid to talk to her, which was very surprising considering that most nerds would never in a million years dare to talk to an attractive woman. It hadn't taken long before he got sucked into the discussions as well, as they moved on from the Avengers to other comics and graphic novels.

After the comic book store Penny said she only wanted to visit one more shop, and Leonard had suppressed a groan when she added she needed something new to wear. They had to walk to the other side of the mall and Leonard was already dreading having to wait for hours while she tried on everything in the store. He knew that women rarely were done quickly when it came to clothes or shoes, even if they promised it wouldn't take long.

"Here we are," Penny said as she pulled him into the shop.

Leonard was surprised to find himself in a lingerie shop. He had not expected that at all, and he immediately started to feel uncomfortable. "Uhm, maybe I should wait outside?"

Penny turned to him. "Of course not! You need to help me pick out the good stuff!"

* * *

Penny was having a great time. She knew Leonard was a little uncomfortable being in the lingerie store, but by showing him the benefit of being there, she felt confident he would grow to like it soon enough. She had informed him that he wouldn't get to see her in anything until she would wear it when they were alone, but that he did get a say in what she might try. It had taken a couple of minutes before Leonard felt comfortable enough to give an opinion, and a couple minutes more before he started pointing out things he would like to see on her. Most of them were things she had already seen and decided to try on, but she wanted to see if he would open up more.

In a way, this was almost like their love making session in her backyard. He had been very uncomfortable at first, looking around nervously. Eventually he seemed to get more into it, and Penny knew he had enjoyed it for the most part. Truthfully, she had been a little uncomfortable as well, her only outdoor experience being in the back of a truck in the middle of the night, past her curfew. It was a whole other ball game to do it right next door to a neighbour who had already looked more than once whenever she had lounged there.

But she found it also very exciting, doing something like that where they could get caught at any time. It added something to it she just found exhilarating, something she definitely wanted to try more in the near future. Interestingly, it had also been the first time they had done it in a slow, loving manner, another first for her. It had added something very special to the physical thing, a deeper connection, a stronger bond. It had been both very tame, compared to their previous sessions, and very intense at the same time.

She had purposely kissed him deeply as she had neared her climax, afraid she would be too vocal and most certainly draw attention to them. As much as the possibility of being caught had excited her, she had not wanted to be caught by her neighbour. But in no way had it been any less amazing than their previous sessions. If anything, it had been more amazing, simply because of the emotional aspect of it.

"What are you thinking about?"

Penny turned her head to look at Leonard. "Just remembering our brunch. Particularly the amazingly sweet and enjoyable way it ended."

"Oh. Yeah."

Penny frowned at his less than enthusiastic response. "You didn't like it?"

"I did like it. It was just... unusual." He sighed. "I guess I wasn't entirely comfortable doing it where we could get caught."

Penny nodded and bit her lip. "How about yesterday, in your lab?"

His shrug was enough of an indication. "Less uncomfortable, since the chances of being caught weren't high. But somewhere in the back of my mind I was wondering what people would think if they happened to go by my lab. We weren't exactly quiet."

"I'm guessing it would be 'alright, the cute nerd's getting some,'" Penny said, trying to lighten the mood a bit. She was glad to see a somewhat smug grin started to form. "Didn't think of that, did ya?"

"I didn't," he admitted.

Penny grinned. "So, more visits to your lab wouldn't be too bad?"

Leonard nodded. "I guess that wouldn't be so bad."

Penny nodded and grabbed his arm with both her hands. "So, no more sex in my backyard, but my Friday's off, I'll swing by your lab for a nooner."

Leonard looked at her amused. "Don't you have every Friday off?"

"Luckily for you, I do," Penny answered, silently adding it was equally good for her, especially since weeknight sleepovers were out of the question for now. "But I'm guessing you wouldn't like doing it in, say, a park?" She wasn't quite sure where the thought had come from, but somehow she found the notion of doing it there very alluring.

"A park?"

"Well, obviously we would find a quiet spot and wait until it's dark, but, yeah." The more Penny thought about it, the more she wanted to experience it. Was she really that perverted, wanting to have sex in a public place?

"Well, I don't know. Maybe?"

Penny looked up at him, surprised at his response. "Really? I figured if you were uncomfortable in my backyard, this would be a definite 'no way' kinda suggestion."

Leonard shrugged. "I can tell you'd really want to, and I don't want you to change just so I'm always comfortable. And maybe I'll start to enjoy... expressing our love and passion in unusual locales."

Penny giggled at the way he phrased it, but at the same time was touched by his consideration for her and his willingness to meet in the middle. "Okay, how about we'll talk about this later and decide on how often you'd be willing to indulge me."

He looked at her and frowned. "You're already making a list, aren't you?"

Penny nodded, not at all embarrassed to admit it. "Uh huh. I'm thinking ocean, elevator, movie theater. Out of curiosity, how do you feel about PDA's? You know, make-out sessions and some patting, either out here or, you know a restaurant."

Leonard's eyebrows rose up high. "You want to make out in a restaurant?"

"Well, doesn't seem like a good idea to have sex there. Although, they would have bathrooms, that could be great, too. And in the American Pie movie, the girl crawled under the table and went down on her boyfriend." Penny suddenly kept quiet and was afraid to look at Leonard. "You must think I'm a pervert. Here I go on and on about something I know you're not really comfortable with." She stopped walking when Leonard did.

"I don't think you're a pervert," he answered, keeping his voice lower than she had. "You're just really passionate and affectionate, which is a good thing."

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable, especially since we decided we'd talk about it at home."

Leonard turned to her fully, pulling her close. "I _am_ uncomfortable right now, but not the way you'd think."

As she was pulled closer, her eyes widened a bit when she felt what Leonard meant with being uncomfortable. She kissed him briefly. "Let's get home quickly so we can... discuss this issue thoroughly."


	9. Chapter 9

"You're late."

Leonard rolled his eyes. Yes, technically he was late, but it was only five minutes. They usually had fifteen minutes to spare, so these five minutes weren't going to get them in trouble. "Good morning to you, too, Sheldon." When his lanky roommate didn't immediately get in the car, Leonard frowned at him. "Aren't you going to get in?"

"Not until you apologize for being tardy."

"It's five minutes, Sheldon. We still have time to spare, so just get in."

"That is not the point, and you arrived six minutes past our usual departure time."

Leonard raised his eyebrow his happy mood vanishing quickly. "You do realize the longer you wait getting in, the later it will be."

"Yes, so it would be prudent for you to apologize quickly."

Leonard sighed. "I don't see why I would have to apologize for being a couple minutes late. Just get in the car now, or you'll be late for work."

"Don't you mean _we_ 'd be late for work?"

Leonard shook his head. "No, I meant _you_. In case you forgot, I'm already in the car and I can leave right now, with or without you. And don't forget you would first have to go back to the apartment to put on your bus pants, and then wait for the bus."

"Oh, alright," Sheldon said as he finally stepped into the car.

Leonard listened to his inner devil for once and sped away without giving Sheldon enough time to buckle up.

"Leonard! I haven't fastened my seat belt yet!"

He glanced at Sheldon, hiding the grin that was building. "We're in a hurry, aren't we?"

"Honestly, Leonard, this new woman you're having coitus with is a bad influence on you."

"She is," Leonard asked, cursing himself immediately.

"Don't you see what she is doing? She's come in between us, physically separating us. In addition, she seems to have no regard whatsoever towards the roommate agreement."

Again, Leonard glanced at Sheldon, his eyebrows up high. "What do you mean? She's respected your wish to not be witness to our... coitus as you call it, and not stay in the apartment."

Sheldon acknowledged his point with a small nod. "Yes, but I believe that was intended to placate me. Would you believe last Saturday I received a letter from an attorney she apparently hired? It puts into question many of the sections in our roommate agreement, stating they are ambiguous and when disputed would have to be explained in your favor."

Leonard couldn't help but chuckle. "It's probably not as bad as you think." Leonard could feel Sheldon's eyes on him as he turned his head in shock.

"Not as bad? Leonard, that roommate agreement has been the basis of our continued coexistence, not to mention our friendship! Your lady friend is clearly jealous and is trying to separate us."

"Sheldon, she's not trying to separate us. She just wants to have a normal relationship, without having to deal with your weird demands."

"They are not weird demands, Leonard. They're well thought out terms, geared towards maintaining our healthy coexistence, which is mutually beneficial."

Leonard just shook his head, deciding to not respond. He wouldn't be able to win, anyway.

"Do you know that her attorney states that all disputed sections are to be ignored until a mutually agreed upon resolution replaces them?"

* * *

Penny frowned at seeing an envelope on her desk. She hung up her jacket by the door and before walking toward her desk and picking up the envelope. She retrieved the contents and noticed it was a formal legal document. She started to smile as she saw what case it was, a smile that continued to grow into a wide grin the more she read.

"Thought you might like it."

"Holy shit!" Penny yelled at the sudden voice, her hand on her chest. "God damn, Rob, you nearly gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," her attorney friend apologized. He walked in and sat in the chair across from her. "As you've seen, there are a lot of things in this agreement that are never going to hold up in the real world. It's clear to me this document was drafted by someone with a basic knowledge of laws and contracts, but it's extremely thin on actual definition."

Penny nodded, once again focusing on her friend's legal document. "Sheldon is going to have a fit when he gets this."

"He received his copy this Saturday," Rob replied, grinning slightly. "Our delivery man said the guy was really something else."

Penny's eyebrows rose. "Wait, you did this through the legal department? Won't you get in trouble when Sheldon pursues this? Because I can tell you, he will."

Rob shook his head. "Penny, you know the legal department is available for non-business related disputes. I already cleared it with my department head, and since she likes you so much and you've never needed any personal representation before, she gave it the green light. After she was done laughing at some of the more absurd sections in the roommate agreement."

Penny giggled. "I'm pretty sure part of her willingness to support this, is because she likes you."

Rob smiled. "I agree that her being my wife might have a little bit to do with it. Then again, she's shot me down a few times, so she knows how to separate her job from her private life."

"You bet I know," Sheila answered from the door. "Hi, Penny," she added. "I just came by to assure you the legal department is going to handle this pro bono."

"What? I can't ask you to do that," Penny said, fearing this whole joke was going to get out of control.

"You didn't ask," Sheila pointed out, as she sat down next to Rob. "We offered. There are currently no big cases going on, you've never needed our representation, as Rob pointed out, and believe me that your case is not going to cost much anyway."

"Are you sure? Leonard mentioned Sheldon has done some crazy things. What if he takes it all the way to court?"

Sheila shrugged. "I'm sure we can handle it. I have a feeling the judge would have a hard time keeping his laughter in."

Penny shook her head. "I don't know. It feels like I'm taking advantage of your department." Penny paused, not sure if she should mention the reason. Instead she just reiterated her main concern. "I just feel bad about it. I'm sure the accountants wouldn't be too happy about such a frivolous use of company resources."

Sheila just laughed. "Are you kidding? You're personally responsible for three marriages and, as of this weekend, an engagement for key people in that department."

Penny blushed slightly. "I'm not sure you can say I'm responsible... Wait, Peter popped the question?"

"Actually, no," Rob replied. "Amanda asked him."

Penny felt great about this development and squealed excitedly. "Those two are just perfect for each other."

"Yes, and they wouldn't even be together if you hadn't set them up." Sheila said. "Just like you did for three other couples in that department. Trust me, when they found out it's about dealing with your boyfriend's roommate, they gave it the green light."

Penny's eyes went wide. She hadn't mentioned anything about Leonard, except that he was a friend. "What?"

"Like I said before," Rob replied calmly. "Dr. Cooper had a few things to say when he received his copy. Apparently you're the, and I quote, dreadful woman Leonard is having coitus with, end quote."

"Dreadful? He called me dreadful? I barely spoke with him, maybe a few minutes!"

Sheila chuckled. "Good to hear you're not denying the coitus part."

Penny knew she was blushing. "I... uhm..."

"The point is," Sheila continued, "after helping so many in our company finding someone to spend their lives with, everyone's rooting for you to have your own happiness. That's kinda hard to achieve when your boyfriend's roommate has these ridiculous rules."

* * *

Leonard grinned as he read the text Penny had just sent him to tell him her friend had sent a legal document to Sheldon. Despite his annoyance at people who'd text while walking, mostly because they weren't paying attention, he quickly replied Sheldon had told him and wasn't very happy about it. He smiled as Penny sent him a few texts explaining her company's legal department as well as the financial department were supporting her and would even pay legal expenses should things go in that direction, though that seemed highly unlikely according to her lawyer friend.

He rounded the corner, still reading Penny's last message and promptly bumped into a woman coming from the other direction. "Oh, god, I'm sorry," Leonard apologized, at the same time vowing to never text while walking ever again.

"Oh, that's alright," the young woman replied, grabbing a number of papers that had fallen on the floor. "I've been the cause of more than one texting accident, so I was bound to be on the receiving end." Once she was finished gathering her papers and putting them back in the folder, she stood back up and smiled. "I'm Alex. Alex Jensen."

Leonard looked at the outstretched hand and back up at her face. "Oh, uhm, Leonard." He shook her hand. "Hofstadter. Leonard Hofstadter." He saw a look of recognition appear on her face.

"Oh, Dr. Hofstadter," she exclaimed, smiling brightly. "Experimental physics, right?"

Leonard smiled back at her. "Yeah. Just call me Leonard. Dr. Hofstadter is my father. And my mother. And my sister." He paused, wondering what to say that wouldn't make him seem like a bigger idiot than she probably already thought he was. "And our cat," he blurted out, immediately cursing himself, since that didn't meet the criteria of not coming across as an idiot at all. "Although, I'm pretty sure Dr. Boots Hofstadter's degree was honorary." _Way too go, Leonard. Really saved your face there. Not_. "So, what brings you here?"

"Oh, I just had an interview with Dr. Cooper. I'm now officially his assistant as I work on my dissertation."

Leonard frowned. "Really?"

Alex nodded empathically. "Oh yes. I had an opportunity to work at Fermilab - they _asked_ me - but come one, when you've got the choice between Fermilab and Dr. Cooper, there's really only one choice you can make."

Leonard barely preventing himself from saying "yeah, Fermilab" outloud. Instead he asked, "So, what's the topic of your dissertation?"

"I'm looking for Trojan asteroids at Earth's L-Five Lagrange point," she answered. After a brief pause she added, as if to explain why she chose that particular subject, "my dad's an astronomer at SETI."

"Oh, SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. You should introduce him to Sheldon," Leonard said, only half joking. "The search is over." It boosted his confidence when she smiled.

"So, what kind of research are you doing?"

Leonard shrugged, knowing he couldn't divulge too much information about the research he had just started on. "High-energy lasers."

Alex's interest was obvious in her expression. "Oh. Military?"

Leonard shook his head, deciding that lying was better. "Not yet, but I can remove unwanted hair from two miles away."

Alex giggled. "You're very funny, Leonard."

* * *

Penny frowned once more when her phone still didn't display a new message notification. Leonard hadn't replied to her last message at all. Even if he had to focus on his work or something, he would've at least sent her a message to tell her that, wouldn't he? Had he been too distracted by her texts, causing an accident in his lab? Was he okay? She didn't want to sent another text, afraid she might make it worse if something had indeed happened.

Penny gasped and put her hand on her chest when her phone suddenly rang. She frowned when the caller was identified as Andy's school, and instantly her worry for Leonard shifted toward her son. "Yes?" She listened carefully, her frown deepening. "Yeah, I can be there in half an hour," she said, confused. Ending the conversation, she grabbed her keys and purse and headed out of the office. She poked her head in the office next door and said, "Hey, Charlene. Could you cover for me? I just got a call from Andy's school and they want me to come get him."

"Sure," the brunette said.

Penny thanked her and rushed to her car. She had to consciously stop thinking about what could've possibly happened that she had to come to school to take him home. The only time she'd been called in to school was after the first time Andy had defended himself and the school administration had tried to put the blame on Andy instead of the bully. They'd almost gotten away with it too, until she realized the school had installed cameras to ensure the safety of the students. She had subsequently insisted on seeing the tape, which had been met with resistance.

First they had said it was because of privacy, but Penny said that it concerned her own son, and she only wanted to see exactly what had happened. Next they'd claimed nothing had been recorded, which Penny had doubted, since that would put the school in a lot of trouble should some crazy person come in and do something terrible to the students.

It had taken her a call to the police department before she was shown what had happened, which had clearly shown Andy had simply defended himself, without using excessive force. More importantly, it had shown a teacher had watched and allowed the bully to hit her son more than once, and had only stepped in when Andy had hit his opponent once.

Penny noticed her knuckles going white from gripping the steering wheel so tightly and she eased up on her grip. They better not try to put the blame on her son again, or she was going to raise all kinds of hell in the administration office! Then again, she'd rather deal with that than with an injured son.

* * *

"What the hell, Andy?!"

Andy remained silent as his mom began her rant while they were driving home, pointing out his martial arts classes were meant for defense, not to attack others, how he was smart and should've handled whatever had been going on using his brains instead of his fists.

And he knew she was right, but that didn't change the fact he just _had_ to do something. He had tried using his words, but it hadn't helped at all. They'd just kept pushing his buttons until he'd snapped and hit two of his opponents. And he knew he'd hit them pretty hard, too, using his martial arts training to add extra force.

"I can't believe you did something that stupid!"

Andy winced and turned to his mother. "I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have let them get to me." He sighed. "They just kept on talking about... stuff."

His mom glanced briefly in his direction, a compassionate expression on her face. "I know you are sweetie, but I'm still gonna ground you."

That shocked him. She had never grounded him before. "What? For making one stupid mistake?"

"Yeah, well, you used a lot of force. That one guy nearly hit his head on that locker corner. Just 'cause you tougher or better doesn't give you the right to do something like that."

"But, grounding me? I'm going off to college in a few months!"

She glanced at him once more, this time anger coming to the front. "Well, for someone smart enough to go to college, you should've known better. You're grounded for two weeks."

"Two weeks?"

"Keep arguing and I'll add another week."

He huffed and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

* * *

"Hi Amanda," Penny greeted the teen.

"Hey." She thrust out her arm. "Andy forgot these," she added, handing over some text books. "Not that he really needs them, but, still."

Penny accepted the books. "Thanks." She paused, trying to decide on what to say next. "Do you know what happened? Andy won't tell me why he hit those guys."

Amanda fidgeted nervously. "Well, uhm, the guys were teasing him for not having done... uhm... you know... stuff... with girls, even though he's going to college."

Penny raised her eyebrows slightly. "He's eleven, of course he hasn't done any of that!"

Amanda smiled, but still seemed uncomfortable. "They... uhm... suggested he should... uhm... next time I would..."

Penny raised her hand. "I think I understand where this is going."

Amanda was red faced, but clearly needed to add something. "It got worse when one of the girls mentioned I hadn't even... you know? And then the guys started teasing me..."

Penny again interrupted the girl with a raised hand. "Listen, Amanda. There's nothing wrong with waiting until you feel ready. I know it's hard to take my word for it, considering what happened to me when I was even younger than you are now, but it's the truth."

Amanda nodded and waved her hand dismissively. "I know that, and it didn't really bother me. The guys did tell me I should've been more like you. Andy really kept his cool, until they said they thought you were a total MILF and would..."

Again Penny raised her hand once more. "Right, right, got it." She paused, then sighed. "At least I understand why Andy did what he did, but it was still wrong."

"I don't think he wanted you to know," Amanda said, looking a little apprehensively. "Could you not tell him I told you about this, please?"

Penny nodded. "I won't tell him, I promise. Thank you for telling me, though."

The teen shrugged. "Sure. I better go."

* * *

"Hey, you," Penny said, a little breathlessly.

Leonard raised his chin, smiling smugly at being able to take her breath away by kissing her. "Hi, yourself," he said, then followed her inside her home. "I'm really sorry for not responding to your last message," Leonard began as he moved to sit right beside her. "I've always hated people who'd text while walking, because they never pay attention, and here I went and did the same, knocking some poor woman over."

Penny smiled. "I did wonder why I got no reply. I even feared I had distracted you too much and cause a big accident in your lab, or something. Then _I_ got distracted when Andy's school called."

"Oh," Leonard asked, eyebrows raised in surprise. "What happened?"

"He got in a fight and hit his two opponents pretty hard. He could've hurt either one really badly. He's grounded for the next two weeks, though I may allow an early parole, after Andrea explained what happened."

Leonard listened as Penny explained why Andy had lashed out and tried to make light of the situation. "Great, more high school guys going for a girl I like."

Penny chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm not interested in high school guys, and definitely not in two cocky guys who like to make fun of girls who are actual smart and _not_ do something stupid like getting pregnant at sixteen."

Leonard put his arm around her shoulder. "Hey, it wasn't stupid, just an unfortunate accident. You shouldn't think of that whole thing as being a mistake."

Penny sighed. "I suppose. And for the record, I never thought Andy was a mistake. A surprise, yes, and I might have timed it better, but having him was never a mistake."

They were silent for a while, Leonard unsure what to say or do in this situation. After a minute longer, he chuckled lightly. "Would you believe the girl I walked into is actually Sheldon's new assistant?"

Penny raised her eyebrows, but a bit of her upbeat spirit seemed to return at the change in subject. "You're kidding. From what you told be I didn't think Sheldon would even think anyone would be smart enough to work for him."

Leonard shrugged. "He probably doesn't. I don't think Alex has any idea what she's gotten herself into. When I asked Sheldon on the way back home, he mentioned he had decided he could use a grad student to go over his old work, things he wrote when he was like six. All because Peter Higgs' paper, written fifty years ago, was initially rejected but recently proven to be right all along."

Penny frowned. "Oh, like the Higgs boson?"

Leonard raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Yeah, that's right."

Penny looked smugly at him. "Didn't think I knew that, did you?"

Leonard became nervous, worried he had offended her. "Oh... uhm... well, it's not really your thing, but I guess you picked up stuff from Andy, who probably was so excited he told you all about it and..." Penny had silenced him by putting her lips on his.

Penny smiled at him after the kiss had ended. "Relax, Leonard, I was only teasing. So, this Alex expects to have him help her with her dissertation, but will instead be doing all the menial tasks Sheldon thinks are beneath him? Poor girl."

Leonard nodded and smiled. "Yeah, and she has really interesting subject, too. I would've suggested her to seek out Raj, but he wouldn't be able to talk to her anyway. We talked a little, I told her what I was working on, well the things I can talk about, she even thought I was funny. She also told me a bit of herself and her dad's work at SETI. She's a really nice girl," Leonard finished, smiling fondly. His smile faded at Penny's expression. "What?"

"She was flirting with you," Penny said, looking hurt and insecure. "And you were flirting right back."

Leonard stared at her with an open mouth, unsure what to say. Alex and he hadn't been flirting, had they? That couldn't possibly have been the situation, could it? He felt Penny move slightly away from him as the silence went on longer and longer, while Leonard tried to determine what _had_ been going on between Alex and him during those few minutes. "Uhm..."


	10. Chapter 10

Penny bit her lip anxiously. Leonard hadn't denied his flirting with the slut Sheldon had hired. He hadn't said a word, just sat there beside her. Was he deciding who to continue a relationship with: her or the smart slut? Unable to bare the heavy silence any longer, she turned toward him, but said nothing. Leonard was frowning and looking at nothing, but Penny could tell his mind was going over what had happened that afternoon after he had run in to that skank.

It was at that instant that Penny remembered her thoughts after their first trip to the mall in search of a nice gift for her son. She had believed Leonard wouldn't even know if someone was hitting on him, and thinking about it rationally now, she had found that that was indeed very likely.

Leonard turned his head slowly in her direction. "Was that really flirting," he asked, sounding genuinely unsure.

Penny couldn't help the small smile, accompanied by something that was mix between a chuckle and a sob. The poor guy was so unaccustomed to the act of flirting, he really didn't seem to recognize it when it did happen. "Yes, Leonard, that was definitely flirting."

"Oh," he said, staring off into space again briefly. "I thought I was just being sociable by having a conversation. In my defense, it's not like girls hit on me frequently, so how was I supposed to know?"

Penny smiled a little wider, happy to find Leonard had not deliberately flirted back at this woman. "Maybe it happens more often than you think?"

He chuckled in response. "Right. Because girls are always like 'ooh, that guy owns two Star Trek uniforms and gets a lot of ear infections. I got to get me some of that.'"

Penny's smile turned into an angry frown. "Dammit, Leonard, will you stop putting yourself down like that!" Her anger dissipated at his surprised expression. "Sorry, but I don't like anyone putting down my boyfriend, not even you yourself."

Understanding replaced his confusion. "I'm sorry for doing that, but really, there aren't many women who've flirted with me."

Penny raised her eyebrows. "Leonard, did you realize I was flirting with you when we were at the mall? You know, the first time?"

"You were?"

Penny nodded, her smile returning. "Yep. And I'm pretty sure it has happened before with other women, but you just didn't pick up on it."

"Oh." He became silent for several seconds. "So, what do I do next time a woman comes up to me and starts a conversation? Should I just, you know, tell her I'm not interested?"

Penny bit on her lower lip again. While she would love it if Leonard would never talk to another woman ever, she knew that wasn't entirely fair. She talked to men during the days and, admittedly, had used her looks on multiple occasions to sway men's opinion in her favor. She shook her head. "No, that's okay. Flirting is kinda harmless, just make sure it's only flirting and nothing else!"

* * *

"Oh, hi Leonard."

Leonard looked up and smiled somewhat nervously. "Uh, hi, Alex." From the corner of his eye he could see Penny look up at the woman standing next to their table.

"Is it okay if Dr. Cooper and I join you for lunch? There doesn't seem to be any other table available."

From the corner of the other eye, Leonard saw his roommate approach. This was not good. His girlfriend didn't like Alex, and his roommate definitely hated his girlfriend. His brain seemed to have locked up, and no resolution to the current problem was forthcoming.

"Ms. Jensen, we do not consort with Dr. Hofstadter and his female companion."

Leonard saw Alex' confused gaze shift between Sheldon and himself. "But, you're roommates and friends, right?"

Sheldon nodded. "We are roommates, yes. Our friendship has been suspended pending a legal dispute, instigated by the woman he's having coitus with on a semi regular basis."

This time Alex looked between Penny and himself, and he couldn't mistake the look of disappointment on her face. He dared a brief glance toward Penny, not wanting to hurt her, but also uncomfortable not offering a seat when clearly all other tables were fully occupied. He saw annoyance on her features, but they seemed solely directed at Sheldon.

"Wait," she finally said, addressing Sheldon, "so, because you and I have a dispute regarding the roommate agreement, you've suspended your friendship with Leonard?" She turned to Leonard. "Why are you still going over to his apartment and take him to work? Clearly he doesn't see you as a friend anymore." Without waiting for a reply, she turned to Alex. "Have a seat," she said, gesturing to the seat right across from her.

"No, wait," Sheldon addressed his assistant as she placed her tray on the table. "I do not approve of us joining them."

"But, Dr. Cooper, we have to eat, and this can not be done without sitting. If we don't accept their offer, it will interfere with your schedule."

Leonard hid a grin, impressed by how quickly Alex had learned how to have some sort of control over Sheldon.

Sheldon seemed to ponder it for a few seconds. "I suppose we could treat this similar to joining any other table with two people we are unacquainted with." He sat down, addressing his assistant solely. "We would not participate in any conversation with the party already seated in that case, and neither will we now."

Leonard glanced at Penny, who looked in astonishment at Sheldon. When they finally locked eyes, Leonard just shrugged.

* * *

Penny stood outside of apartment 4A, for the first time unsure on whether to continue. She glanced behind her as the apartment door on the other side opened, smiling nervously at Frank and Miranda as they exited 4B, adding a quiet "hey."

Miranda gave her a quick hug. "What's going on? Is Sheldon still giving you trouble?"

Penny shrugged. "Yeah, but I can handle him. Leonard's mom is here for a visit."

Miranda gave a sympathetic smile. "Yeah, you better feel prepared before stepping in there and meet the bitch from hell."

Penny almost laughed at the statement, but already having heard a few things about Beverly Hofstadter from Miranda and Leonard, she knew the description was completely warranted. "Yeah, I've been waiting here for a few minutes," she admitted. "I better do it now, before I lose my nerve completely."

Miranda nodded. "Yeah. Hey, you got my number right? Just text me, or even call me, later if you need to vent."

Penny smiled and nodded. "Thanks, I might take you up on your offer." She sighed. "Well, here goes nothing," she said, knocking on the door.

Miranda squeezed Penny's hand. "Good luck," she said, before turning toward the stairs to follow Frank.

Penny faced the door again just in time for it to open up to reveal a less than welcoming Sheldon. "Dr. Cooper," she greeted the tall physicist, figuring the formal addressing of him might soften him a little bit. He simply gave a nod and gestured her inside wordlessly, leaving Penny uncertain whether her tactic had affected him in any way. She entered, immediately seeing Leonard in his chair, looking angry and hurt, though his demeanor improved immediately when he saw her.

Penny was careful not to show too much affection toward Leonard, even though everything she wanted to do was simply hold him close and comfort him. Instead she just smiled at him, said a soft "hey," before turning toward the woman sitting on the couch next to Sheldon, who had returned to his spot. "You must be Leonard's mother."

"Oh, I don't know if I must be, but yes."

"Uh, I'm Penny. I'm..."

"...the dreadful woman who Leonard is having regular, often loud, intercourse with," Sheldon interjected. "Not to mention being the instigator of the current legal dispute I find myself in, with regards to the roommate agreement."

Penny didn't have time to glare at Sheldon, as she found herself being studied by Leonard's mother. Penny offered her hand, "uh, nice to meet you."

The woman looked at the hand with disgust. "Oh, you're a handshaker. Interesting." Despite the woman's obvious dislike of handshaking, she shook it anyway, adding, "Dr. Beverly Hofstadter."

Penny was completely dismissed as Leonard's mother turned to Sheldon. "If you like, I could ask my son to take a look at your legal situation."

Penny's eyes widened in shock and disbelieve at the woman's audacity to side with Sheldon, instead of her own son. Deciding not to let herself get dragged into discussing a legal matter without an attorney, she simply turned toward the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from Leonard's part of the fridge, resisting the temptation to take one from Sheldon's.

Turning back toward the living room she wondered where to sit. She desperately wanted to sit right next to Leonard so they could comfort each other with little touches. Unfortunately, the only two spots available were on the couch next to Beverly, an option that she rejected immediately, or to grab Leonard's desk chair, which would seem odd. Then she grinned slightly and moved towards the chair Leonard currently occupied and slid into the seat right next to him. He shifted slightly to give her a little more room, obviously thankful for her choice.

Penny sat in silence, simply listening to the conversation, which primarily was taking place between Beverly and Sheldon. It was astonishing to see how much these two were alike: both analytical and clinical, and largely unaccustomed or baffled by most normal, but in their eyes unnecessary, social interactions. Over the course of half an hour Penny got a much clearer look into what Leonard's childhood must have been like, which seemed like a nightmare to her. True, her childhood hadn't been exactly perfect, but compared to what she was learning about Leonard's, she really had nothing to complain about.

Despite her growing need to defend Leonard, she remained mostly silent, only offering him support through light squeezes of his hand, and a discreet rubbing of his arm, leg or back. She was certain if she would say something, it would make things even more uncomfortable for Leonard.

* * *

Leonard tightened his arms around Penny as she pulled him into a hug, just outside of the hotel his mother was staying at. Her visit had become a little more bearable once Penny had sat herself down next to him in the armchair, but it had still drained him. He had lost count of the number of times he wished the day would just be over with.

"I know it's wrong to say, but your mom's a real cold hearted bitch," Penny said softly into his ear, not releasing him.

Leonard smiled slightly at her statement, agreeing with her assessment, yet uncomfortable to vocalize the feeling. Instead he let himself enjoy the feeling of love and comfort Penny was awarding him, her gentle caresses of his back. Slowly the caresses shifted from comforting to arousing, at least that's how he felt. He hoped Penny wouldn't notice how the hug and caresses were affecting him, afraid it would end the experience.

Penny gave a soft giggle. "Someone's feeling better."

His smile widened a little as she pressed her lower body into his. Now he really hoped she would stay like that for a while, or it would be very embarrassing should anyone see them.

"You've never been to my place of work, have you?"

Leonard frowned slightly, surprised by the sudden change of topic. "Uh, no, I haven't."

"It's only a few minutes from here," Penny continued, still holding him. "There's nobody there right now, but I have the key and the security access code."

Leonard's frown deepened. "Well, if nobody's there, maybe it'd be best if I come visit you sometime during business hours." He felt disappointed when Penny moved slightly backwards, though she thankfully didn't let go.

"Think it through, sweetie."

Leonard was very confused, not quite understanding why Penny would want to show him the abandoned office she worked at. Was she ashamed of him and didn't want her coworkers to see who her boyfriend was? His eyes widened when her hand gently moved over his crotch. "Oh!" He smiled widely, suddenly understanding what Penny's intentions were.

"There you go!"

* * *

Penny collapsed to lay half on top of Leonard, on her office desk, a smile on her lips. "So, that's my office."

Leonard chuckled. "It has a good, sturdy desk."

Penny grinned, looking into his eyes. "Yeah, I guess we'll have to test the rest of the furniture in here sometime soon." Her eyes went wide when there was the clearing of a throat and a soft knock on the frame of the partially open door.

"Uh, Penny," Sheila's voice came from outside. "Just letting you know you're no longer alone in the building. I'll be in my office for probably an hour."

Penny stared at the door, it's orientation preventing her from seeing out into the hallway but able to hear hastily retreating footsteps. She turned back to Leonard, who was red with embarrassment, and started to giggle. "We should probably get dressed and say 'hi' to her."

"Uh, why? I'm not sure I want to face her after this embarrassing situation."

She kissed him. "Leonard, there's nothing embarrassing about this. Besides, it's not like she's seen anything, at most she's heard us climax. Well, she heard me, probably." At his dubious look she smiled. "Trust me, sweetie, it's okay." It took a few moments before she could see Leonard reluctantly agree and she got down from her desk. She handed Leonard his boxers, pants and shirt, which were all laying more or less on top of her own clothes.

First putting on her shirt and shorts, she then stuffed her bra and panties in her bag, giving a sly shrug at Leonard's surprised look. "Maybe we'll have an encore later."

He chuckled as he pulled on his pants. "I can't believe you're already thinking about sex with me again."

Penny frowned slightly. "Why wouldn't I? You always make me crave for more."

"I do?"

Penny nodded, and closed the physical distance between them, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You certainly do. If Sheila wasn't in the building, I'd been working on your little buddy for the next round, instead of getting dressed."

"Oh." He seemed to ponder her answer then shrugged. "I guess I'm not as unskilled at it as I thought."

Penny crashed her mouth against his, kissing him ferociously. "You're the most skilled lover I've ever had. You're gentle, caring, loving, everything a woman wants or needs. And I hate that your previous lovers made you feel insecure about yourself." She kissed him again, with less force, but just as passionate. She smiled softly. "Then again, I'm _so_ glad they did, otherwise I would've never been able to be with you."

* * *

Leonard smiled nervously, fidgeting with his hands, after he shook Sheila's. Despite Penny's assurance earlier, he was very uncomfortable and not a little embarrassed at being caught in the act.

"So," the raven-haired woman said once everybody was seated at her desk, her eyes on Leonard. "You're the young man who's making our Penny really happy."

"Uh," Leonard glanced at Penny, who sat back in the chair beside him, obviously completely at ease. "I guess?" Did he make her happy? She seemed happy, but she had seemed happy the first time they met, so he could hardly take responsibility for it.

"Believe me, honey, you do," Sheila said with a small nod. "We've all noticed a change in Penny even before your roommate informed our courier what was going on between the two of you."

"He called me a dreadful woman, Leonard," Penny interjected. "Can you believe that?"

Leonard shook his head. "No, you're definitely not a dreadful woman. Sheldon's probably afraid you'll take me away from him, so to him, you are that."

Penny sighed. "Leonard, I'm not trying to force you guys to give up your friendship, though Sheldon was clear the other day that you and he were no longer friends."

Leonard glanced down briefly. "I really am his only friend, you know," he said, quietly, staring unseeingly ahead of him. "He needs me. He maybe an adult in appearance, but inside he's still very much a child, at least emotionally and socially." He turned to Penny as her hand came to rest on his, squeezing gently.

"Would it make you feel better if we didn't pursue this," Penny asked.

"No way!" Leonard shook his head adamantly. "If we did that, we'd never hear the end of it, not too mention he'd add even more stricter clauses, which I'd be forced to agree with. But at the same time I don't really want to make things even more difficult between him and I." He sighed and sat back in the chair. "I just don't know what the right way to go is."

"Perhaps," Sheila said, an amused smile on her lips, "we can handle this in a different way. Leonard, am I correct in my assessment of Dr. Cooper as being most comfortable with strict rules and a rigid schedule?"

Leonard nodded. "Yeah."

Sheila nodded, thinking. "What if we draw up a new contract, one that is more balanced in who it favors?"

Leonard shrugged, glancing at Penny, who seemed equally dubious. "Wouldn't we simply perpetuate his control over me?"

Sheila shook her head. "No, we'd draw it up in such a way he'd become less and less reliant on you, but we explicitly specify the time frame in which this will become minimal. To ensure he'd be more willing to agree, we might need to set a relatively long period over which he'd be getting gradually less assistance from you, but at the same time he'll learn to cope with his own life."

"What about their friendship," Penny asked. "Sheldon made it abundantly clear he'd suspended their friendship because of all of this."

Sheila shrugged. "There is not much we can do about that, aside from drawing up some kind of friendship agreement." After a few seconds, she chuckled. "Just kidding, no one in their right minds would do something like that. I mean, what's next? A relationship agreement?"


	11. Chapter 11

"It's as if she deliberately tries to put him down," Penny said to Miranda as the two of them descended the stairs of 2311 North Los Robles. "And it's just him, too! Not his brother or sister! That just creams my corn, you know?"

"I told you she wasn't worthy of being called 'mother,'" Miranda agreed. "Sometimes I think it would be a lot better for Leonard if he wouldn't see or talk with her at all."

Penny bit her lip as they reached the first floor, turning toward Miranda. "We couldn't do that, could we?"

Miranda smiled and shook her head. "No, that wouldn't be right. It just pains me to see what it does to Leonard each time the bitch visits." Her eyes widened a little. "Uh, I probably shouldn't have called her that."

Penny waved her hand as they reached the ground floor. "No, no, it's a perfectly fitting description of her. And I know how it affects Leonard. I held him for a few minutes outside the hotel she's staying in, just to comfort him. And then I suggested I could show him my office to... uh..."

Miranda smirked. "Comfort him some more?"

Penny shrugged, not actually embarrassed. "Well, yeah. I mean, the building was abandoned, and we're trying to be respectful of Sheldon's whacky demands. And I'm not comfortable with having my son hear us... well, you know."

Miranda nodded. "Yeah, I can understand that. I really don't get how Leonard can stand living with Sheldon and that stupid roommate agreement."

Penny looked at Miranda. "I guess you haven't heard yet?"

"Heard what?"

"I handed a copy of the agreement over to a friend of mine who happens to work for the legal department of our company."

Miranda began to giggle. "Leonard finally lawyered up, good for him."

Penny smiled as they sat down on the bottom steps. "Yeah, Sheldon's not at all happy about it." Her features darkened. "And then of course 'mommy dear' offered for Leonard's brother to look at it and take the case if and when it goes to trial. For Sheldon's benefit! I mean, come one!"

Miranda shook her head, then looked back in shock. "Wait, this is an actual legal dispute now?"

Penny nodded. "Yup. Like I said, Sheldon's not happy, while the legal department is having a great laugh at his apparently badly defined clauses. Anyway, Sheldon now barely speaks with Leonard and has suspended their friendship until this thing is all resolved." She turned her head upward at the sound of someone running down, raising her eyebrows when the hulking boyfriend of Miranda stopped at the top of the final set of stairs, obvious relief on his face.

"I thought something had happened," he said, his deep voice still tinged slightly with obvious concern.

Miranda looked apologetically at him. "Sorry, I didn't mean to get you worried."

Penny glanced between the two, confused. "I'm guessing there's actually a reason for Frank to be concerned about you?"

Miranda shrugged. "Maybe, I don't know."

Frank sighed. "Baby, you've been getting those creepy notes for two weeks now, sometimes accompanied by photos of you. I wish you weren't too stubborn to insist on going home by yourself."

* * *

Leonard took his time to get ready, not caring in the least about how much it was annoying Sheldon. He was surprised Sheldon didn't comment at all, though his facial expression said enough. Leonard knew he'd still had ten minutes before he really should be in the car if he didn't want to be late for work, and he was going to do his best to completely fill that time. Luckily, help came in the form of a text message from his girlfriend.

Leonard took great pleasure in taking his time to read each message and type out a nice response, though his first reply had been to inform Penny of the current situation, to which Penny had sent a string of smiley faces and thumbs up emoticons. Leonard frowned when Penny asked if he knew Miranda was being stalked, replying that he didn't. He ignored Sheldon's audible sigh, sitting down on the couch as he read Penny's messages laying out what she had learned last night.

Leonard made a mental note to ask Frank about this, next time he'd see his neighbor. He didn't for a moment believe he could somehow help either of them, but he agreed with Penny it was awful and that they should offer their support. He shuddered at the thought someone would be stalking Penny; unlike Frank he wasn't exactly intimidating in appearance and therefor unlikely to scare a potential stalker off.

He smiled at Penny's message asking about Sheldon's current state of mind and replied he had never seen the guy so annoyed and yet remain silent. Penny then suggested he had delayed Sheldon long enough and shouldn't risk getting them to work too late. He replied with an agreement, saying he would leave if she would agree on going on another dinner and movie date next Thursday. A smiley face, thumbs up and a couple of kissing lips emoticons was her only response and with a big smile he pocketed his phone, stood up and walked toward the door, grabbing the keys from the bowl. "Let's go Sheldon. We don't want to be late!"

* * *

"Sit down," Penny said, gesturing to the seat next to her. She scrutinized his face as Andy sat down. Clearly he was a bit worried, but Penny wasn't angry with him. She had been surprised Andy had not once complained about being grounded, or even tried to explain himself. Of course he had been wrong to use his martial arts training to shut up the teasing, but Penny was still proud of him defending both his friend and his mom.

"So," Penny finally said after Andy had sat there for almost a minute. "We're now halfway through your grounding period. What have you been doing with that time?"

He shrugged. "Not much. Read up on physics a lot."

Penny carefully hid the smile. She always knew when Andy was lying, but he wasn't right now. He probably had read every physics book or paper he could get his hands on. Penny had allowed his laptop to remain in his room, with the strict rule of it only being allowed to be used for homework or studying. Despite Andy's abuse of his martial arts training, she trusted he would do as he was told, and now she was certain he had. "So, care to tell me why you did what you did?"

Once more he shrugged, a slightly uncomfortable expression on his face. "Just... stuff."

Penny almost rolled her eyes. "Yeah, so you told me before. Anyway, I have a date tonight..."

"With Dr. Hofstadter?"

Penny smiled a little, hearing the joy in his voice. "Yes, with Dr. Hofstadter. So, tonight Amber will be here. I've decided to end your punishment."

He turned to her in surprise. "Really?"

Penny nodded, her smile widening. "Yeah. You haven't complained once and followed the rules. Plus, it was the first time you even had to be grounded, so I think I can afford to get you off the hook a bit sooner." Her expression shifted to a warning glare. "But if you _ever_ do something like this again, no matter the circumstances, I'll ground you for a month, without an early release."

Andy nodded. "Sure, but I won't, I promise."

Penny smiled again and pulled Andy into a hug. "I'm sure you will, sweetie. I love you, you know."

"I know," he said. "I love you, too. I'm sorry I disappointed you."

She released him. "It's okay, just don't do it again."

* * *

Leonard couldn't help the grin as he turned into the parking lot, hearing Penny's surprised intake of breath. Now that he knew her better, he was far less nervous about taking her on a date. He had decided to do something other than just a dinner and movie date. He had gone through her Facebook profile and seen what kind of things Penny had enjoyed, back in Nebraska before she had gotten pregnant with Andy.

"Oh, Leonard!"

He glanced in her direction briefly, noticing the excitement on her face, and knew he'd made the right decision. Turning his attention back to finding a spot, he immediately noticed someone leaving. He turned on his indicator and waited for the space to be cleared.

"Are we seriously going to have our date here?"

He grinned again. "Yeah. I figured we could do something other than watch a movie and I noticed on your Facebook profile you enjoyed this type of activity when you were younger." He turned into the now vacated parking spot.

"I definitely did! I never thought to look for a place like this here in Pasadena!"

Leonard had barely turned off the ignition when Penny arms came around his neck and she placed a kiss on his cheek.

"You're the best boyfriend ever!"

He lifted his chin slightly, proud of himself for choosing this activity. It wasn't until they were inside getting ready and Penny asked him a seemingly innocent question, that he realized there was a minor flaw with his choice.

"You want me to show you what to do?"

Leonard decided he probably didn't need any help. After all, it wasn't exactly rocket science. "I play a lot of Grand Theft Auto. I think I know how to handle a gat." _Just point and click_ he assured himself as he picked up one of the handguns to gauge the weight and feel of an actual handgun in his hand.

"Wow. You are cute when you get all gangsta."

He grinned, knowing she was teasing him for his attempt to sound thug. Before he knew it, Penny's lips were on his, her tongue seeking entrance. Barely a second later, Leonard was glad the weapon was not yet loaded, as his finger involuntarily squeezed the trigger. "Do you want to go first," Leonard asked, once the kiss ended.

Penny grinned. "Don't mind if do!"

Leonard watched as she loaded her weapon efficiently, disabling the safety and took aim. From that point on he had no idea where to direct his focus. He shifted between the target she was impressively hitting dead center every single time, her face that was both completely focused on the target yet sported the happiest smile he'd ever seen, and her stance. No matter how much he kept telling himself it was to learn how to stand, a big part of it was to admire her profile.

Much too soon to his liking, Penny engaged the safety on the weapon and placed it in front of her and then turned to him, beaming as the target came gliding toward them. Leonard didn't have too look at it to know Penny had hit the mark perfectly with every single shot.

* * *

Penny couldn't quite remember when she had had so much fun, and was extremely happy to find she hadn't lost her touch and accuracy. She knew Leonard had asked her to go first so he could observe and learn from her. He must have realized a video game wasn't much of a source to do this correctly.

Noticing he was becoming a bit nervous as he picked up his weapon and eying the ammo warily, she placed her hand on his. "Want me to load it for you, sweetie?"

"Uh, yeah. It's all automatic in the game," he added, still trying to save face.

"It's okay, Leonard. Here, let me show you." She clicked the safety back on, which she hadn't noticed Leonard had disengaged. "Always make sure the safety's on, until you're actually ready to shoot," she said. "Make sure there's no blockage," she added as she showed him how. "Insert the bullets," she said as she did so, deliberately slower than she'd loaded her own weapon.

She then placed the weapon in his hand. "Keep your finger away from the trigger," she warned him, moving to stand behind him. "Place your feet at shoulder width," she added, seeing he had his feet right next to each other. "And move your right foot back a few inches." She allowed herself a second to admire his cute tushy, before focusing on continuing her tutoring.

"Okay, put your index finger of your right hand against the gun's frame, above the trigger." Stepping forward she slightly adjusted his fingers and thumb, then nodded in satisfaction. "Good, now add your left hand, wrapping your fingers around the fingers of your right hand, and place your left thumb right next to your right thumb." She nodded again when Leonard had the correct grip. "Perfect! Now practice taking aim."

Again Penny leaned against his back, placing her hands on his elbows. "Not so rigid, Leonard. A slight bend at the elbows is much better and less tiring." Penny did her best to ignore the heat she felt rising, just by touching his arms. This was hardly the place to get that kind of excited. Instead she moved to stand next to him, grabbed her weapon, assuring the safety was still on and assumed the stance. "Watch, Leonard." She demonstrated how to properly position the arms, nodding when she glanced at him and see him perfectly copy her stance.

"What about recoil," he asked.

"That's why you use both hands," Penny answered, putting her handgun down again. She stood right next to him. "You push forward with your right arm and pull back with your left. It gives you good stability." She smiled. "Ready to try?"

"I think so," he said.

"Right, take off the safety," she said, nodding when Leonard did so without trouble. "Finger off the trigger," she warned him when she saw him move his finger in that direction. "Now take aim, and only when you're ready, you move your finger on the trigger and squeeze it gently." Penny took one step away from him and watched as Leonard slightly shifted his aim before his finger went toward the trigger and he fired off a round.

With more than a little pride Penny saw Leonard had hit very close to the bulls-eye, her pride growing when Leonard's second shot was even closer.

* * *

Leonard drove back toward Penny's home, glad he'd managed pulling off a perfect date. Penny had been an amazing tutor, something the people at the shooting range had also noticed and complimented her on. After a few rounds with the handguns they had a go at a rifle. Leonard was glad his aim had improved, though Penny could've been a sharp shooter as far as he knew. His girlfriend hadn't missed the bulls-eye even once, not even after a staff member had asked her if she wanted to try at a longer range.

"This was _so_ much fun!"

Leonard grinned at the obvious joy in her voice, and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it was definitely more fun than I thought it would be."

"Leonard, you don't have to stuff you don't like just to please me."

He glanced at her. "What? No, that's not what I'm saying! I expected to have some fun, just not as much as I did. Of course, it helped I had a hot tutor, very hands-on type," he finished with a big grin. He was only a little bit kidding, but Penny's tutoring had been a very big part of his enjoyment of the activity. Not to mention the pride he felt when the staff commented she could've gotten the high score if she hadn't occasionally slowed down to help him.

"Well, I do like to have my hands on you," Penny replied. "You know, you looked really hot firing that rifle," Penny said, not a trace of insincerity or mocking in her voice.

Leonard glanced at her. "Really?"

"Uh-huh," Penny confirmed. "I got really turned on and I think that staffer noticed it, too."

"Huh." Leonard focused on the road again, contemplating Penny's words.

"Don't be so surprised," Penny said, her hand landing on his upper leg. "You're already an amazing guy to begin with, but when you do stuff like that that, you know, show off your muscles, and by the way, can I say 'thank you' for wearing this t-shirt? Anyway, it's really hot."

Leonard glanced down at himself, not quite understanding what Penny thought was so special about this shirt. It wasn't exactly a good one, in fact it was just a tad to tight on him. "This shirt?"

"Yeah, it's nice and tight, shows off what you got under there," Penny confirmed.

What he had under his shirt? Leonard wasn't exactly sure what she was seeing, but it was something nobody else, including him, had ever seen. Nonetheless, he filed this information away, knowing he had a few more shirt he rarely wore because they were so tight. "So, how's Andy dealing with being grounded?"

Penny chuckled. "Fine, even better know that I've let him off the hook early."

"You ended it already?"

Penny shrugged. "Sure. It was the first time I even had to punish him like that, and he didn't complain once. And his heart was in the right place when he did what he did, even if it was wrong. I'm sure he learned his lesson."


	12. Chapter 12

Fridays were definitely the best, Penny mused as she stood in the doorway of her boyfriend's lab. He had yet to spot her, and she remained silent, observing him engrossed in his work. Just like last night during their date, Leonard was currently wearing a tight shirt that showed much more of his physique than his regular attire. She nearly forgot to breath when he moved an apparently heavy piece of equipment, causing the hem of his sleeves to strain against his muscles.

And once again, Penny found herself incredibly aroused by her sweet physicist. Since her weekly visits always entailed some very physical enjoyment, Penny figured she might as well start with that today. She moved inside, closing and locking the door behind her, her eyes never wavering from the man of her desire. She smiled when he finally turned in her direction. "Hi," she said, surprising herself with the breathy quality of her voice.

He grinned. "Hi. I didn't realize it was that late already."

Penny shrugged. "It's not, I'm a bit early." She glanced down. "Like an hour early." She turned her eyes upward, looking at Leonard through her eyelashes. "You don't mind, do ya?"

"No, no, of course not!"

Penny released her breath at his assurance, which he followed by a hug. She happily returned the hug. "So, whatcha doin?" She glanced around. "You better not be building a robot girlfriend," she said jokingly.

"Wh- what? N-no, of course not!"

Penny tilted her head slightly, scrutinizing Leonard. "Leonard?"

He sighed. "Well, I'm not building one, Howard is, and, uh, well, before you and I met, I, uh..."

Penny's eyebrows nearly flew of her head. "Seriously?!"

He grinned then. "Of course not! I'm not _that_ desperate. Or that stupid. We _are_ talking about an engineer who managed to get his junk trapped in a robot's hand not once, but twice. I wasn't going to take any chances in that department."

Penny giggled, mostly from relief. "Well, I'm glad you didn't risk your buddy, 'cause I _really_ like him."

"You do?"

Penny noticed his insecurity, knew it was all thanks to the women who'd dated him before her. And then there was of course the damage caused by Beverly. She didn't want him to be so insecure, and she figured the only way to make him realize he had no reason at all to feel that way, was to show him over and over how incredible he was, what he meant to her. How horny he made her. She nodded in reply, biting her lower lip slightly. "Yeah, I wouldn't be here, like, an hour early if I didn't." She realized she was actually blushing at admitting she came early for that, but it was the truth.

Leonard grinned slightly, but just stood there looking at her.

After a minute, Penny broke the silence. "Leonard? Take of your clothes."

* * *

Leonard knocked on Penny's front door, and waited for either his girlfriend or her son to open the door. He was therefor surprised to see an older and somewhat familiar looking man open the door, looking at him questioningly.

"Oh, uh," Leonard began, taking a quick glance at the number beside the door to make sure he was at the right address. "I'm here for Penny?"

"And you are..?"

"Oh, uh, Leonard." He stuck out his hand. "Hofstadter," he added when the man didn't seem to be very satisfied with just his first name. "Dr. Leonard Hofstadter," he elaborated.

"Don't think there's anyone sick, Doc," the man answered, smiling at him.

Leonard pulled back his hand when he realized the man was not going to take it. "Oh, no, Sir. I'm not an MD, I'm a PhD. Experimental physicist," he clarified. He was now sure he'd seen this man somewhere before, but couldn't quite place it. Was this one of Penny's clients, perhaps? He didn't know very many actors, except for those who played in his favorite movies or TV shows, and he was almost positive this man hadn't played in anything he'd seen.

A look of understanding came to the man's face, but he jumped to the wrong conclusion. "Oh, are you tutoring Andy?"

Leonard shook his head. "No Sir, I'm here for his mother, Penny."

He frowned. "You are going to tutor Penny? I didn't think she'd be all that interested in physics."

Leonard wanted to pull his hair out in frustration, but politely he set the record straight: "No, Sir. I'm dating Penny. Penny and I are dating."

"Oh, Leonard, I'm so sorry for being late." Penny's voice came from behind him, ending this nightmare of a conversation. Her greeting was quickly followed by, "Oh my God, Daddy!"

Leonard watched as his girlfriend launched herself into her father's arms. So, that's why the man had looked familiar: he'd seen his picture around Penny's house several times.

"Hey, Slugger," he greeted her, obvious affection in his voice. "I decided to surprise you and my grandson, but it looks like the surprise is on me."

Penny stepped back and smiled. "Daddy, this is Leonard, Leonard this is daddy," she said, making a formal introduction. "Leonard's my boyfriend," she added moving back to him and placing her hands behind his neck. "Sorry, Leonard," she said softly. "I didn't know he'd be coming for a visit." She kissed him then, just a peck, really, but on the lips nonetheless.

Leonard felt slightly uncomfortable kissing Penny in front of her father, but a quick glance in his direction showed the man smiling.

"Relax, I've seen her do a lot worse with a lot stupider."

* * *

It had been a long time since the last time Penny had been nervous about what her father thought. Eleven years, give or take. Right after she had found out she was pregnant. Of course, that time, like the various times before it, had been for completely different reasons. Unlike now, those situations had been because she had made a mistake. Not this time, though. At least, Penny didn't think she'd made a mistake about dating Leonard.

Her father was nice enough to Leonard, even allowing her boyfriend to address her father by his first name, which Leonard had still hesitated to do. But Penny had trouble reading her father, not quite sure he approved of her choice. Not that she would dump Leonard if her father didn't agree. After all, it was her life, her decision, and this one wasn't nearly as life altering as getting pregnant and subsequently having a baby at a young age.

No, if daddy didn't agree, Penny would probably try to make him see why Leonard was an excellent boyfriend. At least he seemed glad to find out Leonard was actually smart, had a good job, and was polite. She hid a grin remembering former boyfriends when she'd been a teen who weren't quite as polite. Of course, being as stubborn as she was, she usually stayed with those boyfriends for a little longer that she'd normally would have, simply because her father had tried to tel her to break up with the guy. But her stubbornness wouldn't be the reason she'd stay with Leonard, no matter what he thought about Leonard.

Unfortunately this surprise visit meant she wasn't going to be spending an entire weekend with just her boyfriend, at least not to do all the things she had started to plan as soon as Andy had mentioned he was going to spend the entire weekend with Rick. True, like he had told Leonard, her father had seen her do quite a bit more than the sweet kisses and small touches she had so far exchanged with Leonard. But she wasn't going to have him witness anything beyond those small tokens of affection, no matter how much she wanted to move and sit in Leonard's lap and really make out.

* * *

"Nah, I'll stay at a motel," Wyatt replied when both Penny and Leonard simultaneously assured him he could stay in the guest room. "You kids probably want some private time, and I can certainly understand."

Leonard couldn't help but feel extremely embarrassed, knowing what Wyatt expected would happen. "Uh, that really isn't necessary, Wyatt. You don't get to see your daughter that often and..."

"Nonsense. It's not like I'm missing a lot of time with her if I sleep somewhere else. I'll get to spend more time with her tomorrow. But I'd like to take both of you out for a steak dinner tomorrow night."

Leonard looked at Penny, confusion on his face. "Aren't you a vegetarian?" Leonard was pretty sure Penny had told him that, and as far as he could remember, she'd never eaten anything with meat in it.

Penny nodded. "Yeah, but I _love_ steak."

"Don't try to understand her reasoning, Leonard," Wyatt warned him, adding a wink. "Her logic, like with most women, differs from ours too much to ever understand it."

Leonard grinned. "I'll keep that in mind, Wyatt."

Wyatt stood. "Alright, I'll be back tomorrow around nine."

Leonard observed once again as Penny and Wyatt hugged each other. He never had that, never had any kind of affection from his parents, and he couldn't help but feel just a little bit jealous. He must have shown his feelings, because as soon as Penny turned around after Wyatt had left, her smile morphed into a frown.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Penny came close to him, her hand rubbing his arm. "Daddy likes you, you know. He wouldn't have left with you still here if he didn't," she added, jumping to the wrong conclusion.

"No, it's nothing like that," Leonard assured her. "It's just that, uh... Well, you and your father are really close, and... uh."

Penny smiled softly. "And you didn't get that at home with your parents?" She pulled him in close. "Oh, Leonard, I'm so sorry you had such a crappy childhood."

He shrugged lightly, but leaned further into her embrace. "It's not your fault."

* * *

Once again Penny was silent. She only half listened to her daddy talking with Leonard while he drove the both of them back to Penny's place. She didn't really mind Leonard learning a whole lot more about her rebellious and somewhat stupid teenage years. No, her silence was because of what she had accidentally overheard earlier, without either of the men knowing.

Daddy had actually told Leonard to never give up on her, even if she'd, as he had put it, "be all stubborn about something and push you away." It had caused some conflicted emotions in her. On the one hand, he obviously approved of her relationship with Leonard, and wanted to make sure Leonard understood. But on the other hand, he obviously believed she was still the stupid, stubborn girl who'd gotten pregnant a few months before her eighteenth birthday.

That had definitely hurt, even if it hadn't been his intention. What hurt the most was that he really _couldn't_ know how much she had changed, considering they rarely ever had been together for longer than one or two days. That was partially her fault, always postponing visits because of work. How often had she taken Andy to Nebraska over the almost seven years they'd been living in Pasadena? Twice? And they'd only stayed for three days both times, she remembered.

It really was her own fault, and it was not fair of her to treat her parents that way. Especially not after they'd helped her out with Andy while she was working hard to earn her college degree. Yes, Daddy had visited almost every year, but her mom, being afraid to fly, had only seen her daughter and grandson twice in seven years. And her sister, like their mom also afraid to fly, had seen her only once.

Penny knew she should, and could, try to visit her family more often. She wasn't rich, but she could definitely afford to visit her family once a year, and for longer than just a couple of days. The company had already hinted at forcing her to take a vacation, since she'd only twice taken a week during the seven years. She almost snorted at the realization she'd become a workaholic; never during her teenage years had she ever expected anything like that to happen. But she really enjoyed her job, and she had allowed it to dictate her life.

* * *

"Penny?" Leonard waited for her to turn her attention toward him as she got ready for bed. "Is everything alright? You've been so quiet." He could see several emotions on her face.

"Yeah," she replied, a soft smile on her lips. "I've been thinking about stuff."

"Oh." Leonard wasn't quite sure what to say or think. In his experience, whenever a girlfriend was quiet and 'thinking about stuff' it hadn't really turned out good for him. But this time, it seemed different. Her reasons to quietly think didn't seem to be about their relationship specifically. "You know you don't have to worry about what your dad told me, right? I mean, I know that was in your past, but I also know how much you've changed. The Penny I know is very different from the Penny Wyatt told me about."

"That's just it," she told him quietly, stepping closer to him. "Daddy doesn't know I _have_ changed. He still believes I'm this stupid, stubborn person."

Leonard was surprised, remembering what Wyatt had told him earlier. "Wha-at?" _Yeah, smooth, Hofstadter_. "I don't think your dad thinks you are either of those things."

"Leonard, I heard him tell you to not give up on me when I'd be all stubborn about something."

"Oh." Again, Leonard wasn't quite sure how to respond.

She smiled at him. "I'm not mad at you. Or daddy. He doesn't really know me anymore. Sure, he comes for a visit nearly every year for a day or two, and I've been back home twice in the past seven years for three days only. He can't really know me."

"Oh." Leonard was slightly confused. While he had never looked forward to visits with any of his immediate family, he didn't think Penny would feel the same. He shifted his attention back to her when she chuckled.

"I guess I am kinda stubborn," she said, not really looking at him. "I wanted to prove I don't need them, that I'm a smart, successful, grown woman. That I'm not that stupid, stubborn girl that got herself in trouble in an attempt to prove a point."

She fell silent and Leonard watched her thoughtfully, but still clueless about how to help her. He really had no experience with this kind of thing, were you actually cared and loved your family.

Eventually Penny looked right at him. "I've decided I'm going to visit them this summer with Andy before he goes of to college. And not for just a few days, but two or three weeks." She looked hopefully at him. "Maybe you could come as well?"

Leonard was stunned she invited him over for a vacation with her family, a vacation she clearly intended to use to restrengthen the bond with her family.

"I know mom will be dying to get to know you better, once daddy tells her about us. And I could pay for your flight, if that's what holding you back. I'd really like for you to be there with me."

Leonard smiled. "Penny, the money is not what's holding me back."

"Oh, right. You don't want to come?"

Leonard has not seen her this vulnerable before, and he hastened to reassure her. "Of course I do! But it sounds to me you have a special reason for this vacation, and I don't want to get in the way of that."

Penny looked confused. "Why would you get in the way? Getting close again with my family doesn't entail spending twenty four seven with them. Plus, like I said, mom will want to meet you, and since she's afraid of flying, it's not likely she'll be visiting any time soon."

Leonard pressed his lips against hers in a brief and light kiss, effectively ending the stream of words. "I'd love to come visit your family." He couldn't miss the relieved exhalation that preceded her verbal response.

"Great! I'll check at work on Monday when I could get the time off, but I doubt they'll be difficult about it."

They both fell silent, Leonard keeping his arm around her waist. After a minute a grin formed. "So, cow tipping, huh?"

The frown forming on her face was offset by the sparkle in her eyes. "Hey, I'm telling you I've done it, okay? I clearly remember the cow standing up and then the cow on its side."

"Where you drunk," Leonard asked, pretty sure she had been. The stories Wyatt had told him had shown Penny had been quite wild during that period of her life.

"I was sixteen in Nebraska. What do you think?"

Leonard grinned. "I think you're the one who fell over."

**Author's Note:**

> Clearly the story explores what would've happened if teenage Penny had actually been pregnant, though I set the story itself for around season six's The Holographic Excitation (just because I really, really like that episode).


End file.
